Winner Medical has announced that it has acquired 75.2 per cent equity of Global Resources International (GRI) in a cash deal valued at approximately $120 million. This is Winner Medical's first international equity acquisition project and marks an important step in its global strategy, serving as a milestone.

The two parties will create significant scale and synergy effects, establishing a new benchmark for ‘one-stop solution for global medical consumables’, enhancing international core competitiveness, and improving supply chain capabilities and resilience. Furthermore, this acquisition will strengthen global production and logistics, expand product lines, enhance research and development innovation, and establish operational structures in the United States and Europe.

According to the announcement, GRI was founded in 2000 and is a global medical consumables and industrial protective equipment company headquartered in Georgia, the US. Its products include surgical kits, drapes, sheets, containers, surgical gowns, and industrial protective clothing. GRI has multiple production facilities worldwide, including in China, US, Vietnam, and the Dominican Republic, with a total production area of over 80,000 square meters and total warehouse space of over 70,000 square meters. GRI has sales and logistics networks in both the US and Europe. In 2023, GRI's revenue exceeded $150 million, with its main business spread across the US, Europe, and Asia.

This acquisition aligns with Winner Medical's strategy to create a one-stop solution for global medical consumables. The two parties can form a large-scale synergy in global markets, research and development, production, and product advantages. GRI has mature medical consumables and industrial protective product production and logistics bases in US, Vietnam, and the Dominican Republic, directly filling gaps in overseas production capacity. These will complement Winner Medical's existing eight production bases in China. The Vietnam and Dominican Republic factories can fully leverage labour cost advantages.

At the same time, Winner Medical can adapt to local market trends in US. and Europe by being rooted in overseas production facilities. Winner Medical will also bring its intelligent manufacturing capabilities and digital systems to co-create sustainable new production capabilities, comprehensively improving its ability to flexibly respond to opportunities and challenges in global export markets, the company said in a press release.

GRI possesses globally leading technologies and innovations, such as the research, production, and processing capabilities for a water-soluble, degradable protective material. Winner Medical has over 30 years of independent research and development experience and holds multiple patents. Building on this, the two parties will delve deeper into material science, developing world-leading new materials to provide higher-quality products and better solutions for both domestic and international customers. This will broaden the application of innovative base materials, composite materials, and functional materials in the medical and other fields. Additionally, GRI's consumable injection-moulded products will expand the company's medical consumables offerings, meeting the diversified needs of global customers and achieving a win-win for both suppliers and consumers.

The US is one of the largest medical consumables markets globally. This acquisition enables Winner Medical to establish a complete localised operational system and management team in the US, covering key functions such as R&D, production, sales, logistics, and services. GRI's founding management team has over 30 years of experience in the US market, with extensive industry and management expertise in medical consumables. Winner Medical will incorporate its philosophy of ‘product leadership and operational excellence’ into the local team to better serve global customers, including those in operating rooms and hospital wards. The acquisition also allows Winner Medical to bring cutting-edge technologies and concepts from abroad into China, significantly enhancing the company's global competitiveness.