Respiri engages Entech Electronics to manufacture wheezo at ‘significantly’ improved cost

Health technology company Respiri (ASX: RSH) has engaged Entech Electronics to manufacture its “ground breaking” wheezo device offshore in China, which is expected to “significantly improve” production costs.

South Australia-based electronics manufacturer Entech has been manufacturing products at its Shenzhen plant in China since 2006.

Respiri noted Entech has all the certifications and competencies required to meet its high quality and efficiency expectations for its wheezo device.

Commenting on the partnership, Respiri chief executive officer and managing director Marjan Mikel said Entech was “well placed” to support the company’s global product volume requirements at a cost that fits with its business model.

The agreement is expected to “significantly improve production costs through design and bill of material optimisation”. Additionally, reductions in labour rates, assembly and test procedure costs are also anticipated.

Preparing to begin manufacturing

As part of the agreement, Respiri has already placed its first orders with Entech with production preparation underway.

Entech chief executive officer Wayne Hoffman said the company’s Shenzhen plant had already begun investing in assembly and test equipment to enable it to scale quickly and meet Respiri’s forecast global demand.

He added the plan will be able to accommodate monthly volume requirements “well in excess of 10,000 devices”.

Respiri anticipates the deal will reduce its cost of goods by 85% and this is expected to fall even further as volume increases.

In readiness to meet forecast demand, Respiri has commissioned 12,000 devices from Entech for delivery from February next year.

Wheezo study positive

Today’s news follows a study results released earlier this month that demonstrated the wheezo device was capable of detecting the presence or absence of wheeze in patients with chronic respiratory ailments.

Eleven physicians used the electronic hand held wheezo device to assess wheeze severity in 56 patients that had been admitted to hospital with pronounced airway disease and a clinically detectable wheeze.

Preliminary results indicated that wheezo had an overall sensitivity rate of 89%.

“The detection of wheeze at such high levels of sensitivity and specificity when benchmarked against a physical assessment by a trained clinician using a stethoscope, highlights the potential of our device to provide accurate, real-time measurements of wheeze in patients outside of the clinical setting, where monitoring of the disease is paramount,” Mr Mikel said.