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Global Research & Development

Our Global Commitment to Deliver

Around 3.2 million individuals worldwide suffer from renal failure. With innovative products and therapies we define highest standards for the dialysis treatment of patients with chronic kidney failure and and extracorporeal therapies for organ support.

Our Global Research & Development (GRD) activities enable us to develop products efficiently and to systematically promote the exchange of knowledge and technology between regions. Our intention to develop innovative products that are not only of the highest quality, but are also affordable so that caregivers and patients can benefit from them.

 

The Health Care Group

Creating a future worth living. For patients. Worldwide. Every day. More than four decades of experience in dialysis, innovative research, the global leader in dialysis services and products - that is Fresenius Medical Care.

More information about Fresenius Medical Care

Our Products

Every 0.7 seconds, we treat a patient with dialysis somewhere in the world. One in two dialysis machines worldwide is made by Fresenius Medical Care.

R & D Expenditures

Fresenius Medical Care spent a total of around 131 Millions € on R & D in 2017. Around a quarter of our R & D expenditures went into funding advance developments for future product innovations.

Patent Portfolio

At the end of 2017, our patent portfolio comprised some 8,390 patents. A broad portfolio of patents will provide us with a wide range of treatment options in this competitive area in future.

Employees

In 2017, 825 highly qualified employees worked in R & D worldwide. Around 530 employees, and therefore the majority of our R & D staff, are based in Europe.

Core Areas R & D Activities

Our R & D strategy is focused on improving our ability to deliver innovative competitive products on time and enhancing our focus on developing countries. We have identified six core areas as the future focal points of our R & D activities.

Market Leadership

Maintain our position as market leader, we aim to consistently and sustainably offer innovative technology, products and features that put us ahead of the competition and improve processes, manufacturing, services and, most importantly, the quality of life and medical outcomes for our patients.

Vertical Integration

GRD analyzes and improves therapy systems as well as processes in our clinics using lean principles supported by technology. As we are a vertically integrated company, our R & D benefits from direct access to the opinions and experience of patients and clinical staff at our own dialysis centers. This helps them to enhance the usability and features of our products in such a way as to optimize and further automate processes in the clinics and simplify operations.

Global Portfolio Management

We actively manage and control our global product portfolio to identify synergies between different product families. By exploiting these synergies, we can improve R & D efficiency and speed up time to market. Even though different markets have different requirements, our platform approach and modular system components enable us to reduce development times, achieve economies of scale in purchasing and bundle our development resources.

New Technologies and Applications

Apart from new products that are about to enter the market, we are working on and significantly investing in new technologies and applications for mid and long-term growth. A stringent and systematic portfolio management approach ensures transparency across all projects and new ideas. In addition to our internal R & D efforts, we collaborate with external partners to create a comprehensive innovation and technology network.

Emerging Markets

Many dialysis patients in emerging markets still lack reliable access to treatment. Extending dialysis coverage in these markets offers potential for growth and can save many lives. To achieve this, we are developing a dedicated product portfolio for these markets and expanding our local presence.

Home Therapies

More people than ever suffer from chronic kidney failure. The resultant higher cost burden for health care systems and the limited availability of trained personnel for dialysis centers are boosting demand for home therapy systems worldwide. Home dialysis and its associated technologies and products are therefore another key focal point of our R & D activities.

Our target is to drive innovation in order to improve the lives of millions of dialysis patients around the world.

Dr. Olaf Schermeier, CEO Global Research & Development

Who we look for

We need entrepreneurs and explorers, people who are passionate about the opportunity to make a difference in the life of our patients.

Program Project Manager

Assumes the holistic management of and responsibility for a defined project / product within a Global Therapy Program from its concept phase, development, industrialization, market launch until transfer into its product life-cycle.

Requirement: BS/MS in a technical field; 10+ years of experience including 5+ years in a leadership role.

Engineering Project Manager

Leads multiple complex projects from an engineering perspective. Coordinates activities of several departments like Software, Electronics, Mechanics, Verification and Quality to ensure that predetermined technical specifications and timelines are met.

Requirement: BS/MS in a technical or scientific field; 5+ years of experience including 3+ years in a leadership role.

Software Development Engineer

Plans, designs, develops, and tests software systems or applications for software enhancements and new products. Designs and develops technical medical procedures.

Requirement: BS/MS in the field of electrical engineering, physics, physical technology, medical engineering, computer science or similar; experience depends on the position.

Program System Architect

Partners with Marketing/Product Management, Quality, Regulatory & Compliance teams, department Program Managers, Systems Analysts, Hardware, Software and Systems Engineers regarding requirements gathering and overall system architecture for the commercialization of innovative new products.

Requirement: Typically requires a BS/MS in the field electrical engineering, medical engineering, computer science or similar; 8-12 years of experience.

Electrical Development Engineer

Contributes to the design, development, modification, and evaluation of electronic parts, components, or integrated circuitry for electronic equipment or other hardware systems and/or electrical engineering applications.

Requirement: BS/MS in the field of electrical engineering or similar; experience depends on the position.

Mechanical Development Engineer

Contributes to the development and design of components and specifications for dialysis machines and associated projects. Designs and analyzes mechanical systems, equipment and packaging.

Requirement: BS/MS in the field of mechanical engineering or similar; experience depends on the position.

Scientist

Contributes to the development of products like solutions and concentrates. Constructs, sets up and commissions test benches to test sterile products. Maintains the regulatory laboratory requirements.

Requirement: BS/MS in a scientific field; experience depends on the position.

Quality Engineer

Coaches and supervises development with regard to the preparation of necessary project documentation, as well as compliance with development processes. Prepares and coordinates internal and external quality audits.

Requirement: BS/MS in a technical or scientific field; experience depends on the position.

Our Global Structure

Our global approach enables us to respond to the demand for improved high-quality yet effordable treatment methods, which is growing worldwide. In doing so, we continue to take regional market conditions into account by offering products in 120 countries.

Current jobs at GRD

Fresenius Ambassadors

Do you want to get information about GRD at first hand? Then get in contact with colleagues from GRD directly. Click on the button to send an e-mail with your question to our Fresenius Ambassadors.

Tilman Stäblein

Career Level: Professional
Function: Senior Manager Procedures
Department: Global Research & Development
Location: Schweinfurt / Germany

Contact Tilman

Dr. Sebastian Wieskotten

Careeer Level: Professional
Function: Director Project Management Office Europe
Department: Global Research & Development
Location: Bad Homburg / Germany

Contact Sebastian

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