Voyant

Considering leadership was in complete denial of previous threats (DaVinci and reprocessing) until it was too late, I'm glad to see some concern. If there is one lesson to take from reprocessing, it's that customers will accept lower quality if the price is right. The reality is that VS is a commodity now. So do we figure out a way to compete in this new market, or keep playing wack-a-mole every time a Ligasure knock-off, like Voyant, hits the market?

 

Bovie is a wreck of a company and ConMed tried premium pricing with a me-too product, so it's no wonder those failed. Olympus is a worst-case blend of those and Blunderbeast was a good idea that just doesn't translate.

Applied scares the sh*t out of us because they have the call points and, assuming the product works, they live to wreck the market by accepting lesser gross margin. Unless Voyant can't seal, has crazy-long cycle times or creates a ton of collateral tissue damage, people will gladly trade a millimeter of additional thermal spread or an extra second or two for big-time cost savings.

This is all about accelerated price erosion rather than superior technology.

 

That is our mission at Applied.... to disrupt and commoditize the market.

 

Typical Applied they will be a cock-block for me to make over plan money They are quoting $400 for voyant.

 

NAH try $250

 

BS $250 If it sounds too good to be true it is ...... Or it's a real piece of shit.

 

It is actually being trialled at UPMC and Kaiser; COV's biggest and most committed accounts.

 

No way $250. Let's see the PO.

 

Voyant is good. It make seal blood vessel and have pretty color. Look very like Ligasure. Many less pesos. How much you want to pay?

 

I hear they are giving away the box fo free too! Fucking great!!!

 

I wish I can upload file to this board to really address your curiosity.

 

Post it to Imgur and drop the link here.

 

Too bad you won't be working there this time next year. What's your average tenure at AM? 18-24 months. The rep in my accounts is looking already he won't make it long enough to get a voyant evaluation started.

 

Applied isn't on a gpo and won't be for at least the next year, that's their first problem, especially when trying to make energy a commodity. They can't produce an open device and 3 out 4 of their evaluations have failed. They have been swinging for the last 6 years and just can't seem to hit the ball. They are pricing around 350 in my area and people still aren't interested.

 

Contrary to your believe, I sense that our leaderships started to get worry about Voyant. AM continue to get aggressive. I see it in the low $300 in my area in the north east and account started to reconsider.

 

How about we just let the market and surgeon decide. If Ligasure is a better device it should win. If Voyant is a better device then it should win. If some Chinese company has a better product, they should win.

 

Hope is not a strategy.

 

All kidding aside, AM might as well go the route of mail catalog sales. Their reps offer zero value. A dr doesnt need a rep to put in a trocar, an Alexis wound retractor, a uro stent, or tell them how to operate a pair of scissors or clip applier. The funniest thing I think I heard was when they came out with their 5mm clip applier that you had to use their balloon trocars and there was some special deployment mechanism to it. They're trying to reinvent the wheel and are failing miserably everywhere. They should just mail their hospitals a catalog like Sears used to do, and if they require a "rep," then there should be a regional specialist on call to come in as needed. The last 3-4 reps i've seen in my territory over the past few yrs are laughed at because they look like they just graduated HS. (Except the one really hot one......I guess AM is trying to make med device sales like pharma?)