Calvin Lin Shares Insight on Prioritizing and Partnering

Calvin Lin has led the U.S. operations for United Orthopedic for more than a decade. During that time, he has learned that trust and people are the most critical factors in a successful business.

“When we came to the U.S., we believed that there’s always room for great products. But in the business of healthcare, most of the time, it is the trust factor that decides if you survive or not,” Mr. Lin said. “Regardless of being largely successful in other parts of the world, it did not mean automatic brand recognition and market share in the U.S.”

An orthopedic surgeon may only change the product they use to or three times in their career. Typically, the decision doesn’t fall solely on the products themselves, but on the company’s ability to listen and respond quickly to customers’ needs.

“Over the years, I spent a substantial amount of time meeting people and telling them about our story,” Mr. Lin said. “Step by step, I was able to put together a team of talented individuals who believe in our vision and core values. With the same team’s help, we were able to establish relationships with some of the most reputable institutions in the U.S. and the world. In the next five years, we will be challenging ourselves to be one of the fastest growing orthopedic companies.”

Mr. Lin’s vision for United has permeated the company’s day-to-day work as well as their long-term strategy in the joint replacement space. He shared with us how United has navigated the pandemic years’ challenges, the importance of collaboration, and what to expect from the company in the future.

What has been the most significant challenge leading through the pandemic?
Mr. Lin: To me, the greatest challenge during COVID is how to balance priorities. Is it appropriate to stay the original course? Does one downsize or push to expand? As for United, we believe our top priority remains our people, because only with a team who believes in our mission statement and core values will we see United advance to the next level. In 2020, we not only managed to keep the same team without furlough or pay cut, but we added a few new talented individuals and achieved strong double-digit growth in the U.S.

During the pandemic, we used this time to focus on new product pipelines that are critical to bringing innovation to the market and to our short-term/long-term growth movements. The plan is to present the outcomes of this innovation pipeline regularly over the next five years.

How has United’s vertically-integrated business model helped or hindered as you responded to COVID?
Mr. Lin: Staying vertically integrated is a key strategy within our organization because we believe efficiency is the future. For example, during COVID, since we control both the distribution and manufacturing, we were able to quickly adjust our product lines to supply the necessary resources for the markets where surgeons could still operate. We survived the first wave of COVID and didn’t have any backorders nor did we lose any cases because of it. Accomplishing this feat is due to our ability to move swiftly and capably through our company’s vertical integration model.

How would you describe the joint replacement market today?
Mr. Lin: Today’s joint replacement market has become more challenging for newcomers. Healthcare systems in the U.S. are under pressure to provide better quality of care for significantly less for a population that is growing and aging at a rapid pace. However, challenges represent opportunities for companies who are ready. Additionally, with the increased demand for same-day surgeries, healthcare providers are dealing with problems different from clinical ones they have seen whether they are operating in hospitals or ASC settings.

United has been aggressive in partnering with other companies to leverage their enabling technologies—companies like THINK Surgical and Pixee Medical. Could you tell us about how those partnerships came about?
Mr. Lin: A big part of innovation moving forward is about adopting new technology into the surgical flow, such as 3D printing, surgical planning, computer-assisted surgery, big data, augmented reality, etc. We have been investing in 3D printing technology for years because it falls right into our wheelhouse.

With regard to robotic-assisted surgery, it is a strategic move to collaborate with THINK Surgical. THINK Surgical has the only active robot for joint replacement in the world. We believe it will give both companies a better position to compete by combining United’s clinically proven product portfolio and THINK Surgical’s active robotic technology. In this way, United can continue to invest in what we do best while also providing our customers with an innovative solution, which is intended to deliver more consistent outcomes and help keep cost per case in control.

We are actively engaged with several partners in bringing strategic technological solutions to the orthopedic market on a consistent basis.

What can we expect from United in 2021?
Mr. Lin: This year remains a complicated one for us as we are still in the middle of the pandemic. Later in the year, we plan to launch two flagship products—the Conformity stem, which is an HA-coated stem built on long-term clinical success with an improved design based on surgeon feedback; and the USTAR II, which is a complete system for complex knee revision and limb salvage that allows surgeons to perform the exact same intercondylar cut from our primary knee system to limb salvage. U.S. surgeons have designed these products, and we are extremely excited about sharing these new products with the market.

Also, 2021 is our rebranding year. We found our existing visual recognition did not represent who we are today. People used to call us “UOC” because that is the abbreviation of the company name; however, we find it better to know us as “United Orthopedic” or “United” because it better identifies who we are and what we do. Within team United, we unite with our surgeons to meet patients’ needs.