Bolton-based Vernacare has agreed a five-year supply deal with Asian healthcare management group Manipal.
The British healthcare manufacturer expects sales in India to exceed £11m over the next three years thanks to this new deal, which has been heralded by Theresa May during her visit to the country this week.
The private equity backed company is also exploring the possibility of opening a manufacturing site in India to help aid the growth that the company is expecting in the country.
Vernacare will supply Manipal Healthcare with environmentally friendly, single-use infection prevention systems. The hospital group are the first in India to use Vernacare’s system, which reduces the risks of cross infection when washing patients.
The Prime Minister welcomed the agreement and said: “This is fantastic news for Vernacare whose state-of-the-art products help save lives across the world every day.
“Already operating in 96 per cent of hospitals in the UK – I hope that Vernacare will continue to go from strength to strength at home and here in India.
“British companies like Vernacare show how we lead the way as one of the world’s greatest trading nations and that UK business and innovation is hard to beat.”
The company invented the human waste management in Bolton and the product is still manufactured in the town. The single-use system is used in 96% of NHS Trusts as well as healthcare facilities in another 48 countries.
Emma Sheldon, Vernacare’s group marketing director and group board director of the UK India Business Council, said: “This export contract marks our entry into the vast and innovative Indian healthcare sector and we expect our attendance on this trip to further strengthen business within India.
“We also have strong interest in our infection prevention system from two other leading Asian healthcare groups, who are trialling our best practice method of safe and hygienic patient toileting and washing.”
