With total revenue of 6.8 billion euros and 61,583 employees in fiscal year 2017, the Hospital Care and Avitum divisions launched an optimization program in the area of research and development for active medical devices to accommodate their significant growth. The primary objective of the optimization program was to reduce development time and increase customer satisfaction. In addition, the goal was to merge the previously independent development divisions of both business units into a powerful single unit.
In two consecutive initiatives, B. Braun, in collaboration with consultants from 3DSE, first designed the harmonized development processes and then the new development organization.
The design of the development processes took place in four consecutive phases: designing the process landscape, the sub-processes, the methods and tools, as well as piloting and rolling out the processes. In particular, the intensive collaboration—which constantly alternated between group work, plenary sessions, and expert reviews by a panel—was enthusiastically received by the participants. The results are impressive: Within two months, both the R&D process landscape covering the entire product lifecycle and detailed process maps for pre-development and product development were completed.
Key advantages of the new process model include a clear depiction of cross-functional collaboration and its integration with all relevant regulatory requirements for product development. The development of the new R&D organization proceeded in three phases: designing organizational alternatives, selecting and refining the most promising alternative, and implementing the new R&D organization. As part of the organizational design process, participants particularly praised the methods for fostering creative collaboration among team members from different development departments, as well as the trust-based leadership guided by the proven 3DSE framework. This approach ultimately paid off perfectly in the final presentation to the Steering Committee.
“With 3DSE’s emergent consulting approach, we were able to quickly establish a jointly supported process and organizational structure for the development of active medical devices, which will allow us to significantly reduce our development time,” says Michael Reindl, Vice President of Automated Infusion Systems and Head of Development for Active Medical Devices at B. Braun Melsungen AG. B. Braun is currently implementing the new structures. Mr. Reindl comments: “Thanks to the change management tools employed by 3DSE, process design and optimization in particular have become a self-sustaining process.”
