Is it Possible to Build a Profitable Maintenance Business in the Market of Heavy Medical Equipment in the B2G Segment

The relevance of the study is defined by the dramatic situation associated with the new high-margin medical device market in Russian Federation. The study shows the industry practice of heavy medical equipment maintenance2 and challenges in shaping the business model in conditions of legislative and regulatory gaps, an objective deficit of qualified technical experts and the poor quality of maintenance at public healthcare. The relevance of the article is formed by the absence of formal and informal rules of market performance. There is no consentience neither in the legislative, executive and judicial authorities, nor among the healthcare managers, suppliers (including Company’s subsidiary in Russia) and consumers (healthcare sites) of complex medical equipment. The problem is also dramatized by the black-market spare parts supply in Russia and the trend to its validation by the authorities. It’s difficult to embrace the phenomenon, to define values and goals, and specify ethical and practical results. Low development of theoretical economy rules at the new market cause the uncertainty of business compliance in the Russian Federation. The purpose of the study is to identify the basic theoretical foundations at the emerging market of heavy medical equipment that have an impact on the development of this innovative sector of the economy. The research item is presented as a KeyKis and defined as follows: "Is it possible to build a profitable maintenance business at the market of heavy medical equipment (HME) in the B2G segment and guarantee its high-quality in the situation of legislative loophole?" The answers could serve as a basis for development the legislative provision and maintenance guidelines, as well for forming managerial and marketing strategies for the company. The research methods consist in examining this phenomenon in a particular challenging situation in time, space and interrelation of key participants of the emerging industry market, including public and private stakeholders, domestic and foreign businesses, responsible and irresponsible characters. The case study (KeyKis) is based on authoring tools of academic economy that are applied in practice: the product matrix, the market carotid (3-D economy model), the amplified marketing strategy matrix. The research results show the mutual influence of stakeholders on the new market branch of medical technologies and business development opportunities at the heavy medical equipment maintenance market in Russian Federation. The practical importance of the paper is to facilitate the definition of difficult economic situation, provide guidelines for strategic processing and apply these tools to practical management.