MOUNTAIN BROOK MAN RELUCTANTLY MOVES AWAY, BUT HAS IDEA
Today’s guest columnist is?Daniel Bolus.
I was born and raised in Birmingham and attended Mountain Brook High School.
I graduated with a degree in Biomedical Engineering?from Tulane University in 2018,?and, I have been involved in Birmingham’s entrepreneurial scene ever since.
My fiancé and I recently moved to Seattle, but would love to return to Birmingham one day pending more robust career opportunities.
To foster these career opportunities, I believe that Birmingham has the potential to be a leading national hub for medical device manufacturing.
Most recently, I served as the director of national outreach for?Hardware Park , an incubator space focused on physical product innovation in downtown Birmingham. From my experience both locally and nationally, I believe Birmingham is positioned to be America’s leader in medical device manufacturing.
Why we could be #1 in medical device manufacturing
Birmingham became the Magic City because we had all the ingredients to make steel at the right time and place. Similarly, Birmingham currently has the three key ingredients it takes to become a leader in medical device manufacturing: a growing logistics hub, a history of manufacturing, and a thriving medical ecosystem.
A growing logistics hub. Many national companies such as Amazon are investing in large logistics centers in and around Birmingham. Why? Because we have a lot of cheap land, and we are centrally located. Having a logistics hub nearby is a huge advantage for manufacturing.
A history of manufacturing. Birmingham’s heart is in manufacturing, from a history of steel manufacturing to our proximity to top automotive manufacturing facilities. These core skills naturally translate to medical device manufacturing, and many experts have drawn close connections between the skill sets and regulations required for the automotive industry with the medical device industry.
A thriving medical ecosystem. For someone visiting Birmingham, it doesn’t take long to realize that downtown is home to some of the nation’s leading hospitals and physicians. I have personally connected with some of these bright physicians who are directly affected by the problems in the medical device industry. These problems could be solved right here in Birmingham.
If we work together, we can create countless opportunities in Birmingham focusing on medical device innovation and manufacturing.
These jobs will be more resilient than tech jobs at retaining top talent in-state, as manufacturing is an industry that cannot go remote.
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How do we do it?
To answer this question, let’s look at one of the largest successes for economic development: Silicon Valley. What is often forgotten about the story of Silicon Valley is ironically in its very name – Silicon Valley was the epicenter for computer chip manufacturing made from silicon wafers.
Preliminary successes in computer chip manufacturing led to the meteoric rise of the tech industry and large venture capital firms in Silicon Valley. It is important to note that all of this started happening in 1956 – showing to the world that massive economic impact can occur in just one generation.
To recap: it was the chip manufacturing movement and a few key leaders who were willing to reinvest into the community that created Silicon Valley.
It was not some well-crafted advertising campaign, but instead a significant geographical proximity to a key manufacturing industry. From this location-based industry, wise minds were drawn to live, collaborate, and give back to the area.
Right now is an amazing opportunity to invest in medical device manufacturing. Due to the pandemic exacerbating the effects of global supply chain issues, there are many initiatives to on-shore critical manufacturing industries in America.
In particular, the medical device industry is poised for a revolution as tech and robotics hit the quickly-growing healthcare sector with home health equipment, wearables, and robotic surgeries driving an immense growth curve for medical devices over the coming decade.
We are at a crucial moment in time for Birmingham to yet again?distinguish ourselves as a city through unique industry offerings. It may not be enough to reinvent Birmingham as another tech hub splintered off of Silicon Valley’s overpriced cost of living.
Looking ahead, we have a unique opportunity to recombine the ingredients that have already made Birmingham great and invest these into leading an industry poised for huge growth:?medical device manufacturing.
Let’s unite together to make this a reality.
Daniel Bolus has a Bachelor’s Degree in Biomedical Engineering from Tulane University. He’s the CEO of ClubHealth and resides in Seattle, Washington.
David Sher is the founder and publisher of?ComebackTown .?He’s past Chairman of the Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce (BBA), Operation New Birmingham (REV Birmingham), and the City Action Partnership (CAP).
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Invite David to speak for free to your group about how we can have a more prosperous metro Birmingham. [email protected]