The China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone has welcomed its first project combining the functions of a self-operated international distribution center and a research and development center for proprietary medical devices.

On April 29, the United States medical equipment supplier Becton Dickinson launched the BD PVG Distribution Center, which also serves as the BD Shanghai R&D Center, in the Shanghai Pudong Airport Free Trade Zone.

Once fully operational, the center is expected to generate 2 billion yuan ($278.5 million) in foreign trade annually.

The distribution center marks BD's first self-operated medical device hub in the Asia-Pacific region and will primarily handle the full product portfolio of Bard, which BD acquired in 2017.

The R&D center is equipped with three world-class laboratories, supporting research in diverse fields such as mechanical, electronic, and chemical engineering. It is currently advancing multiple pipeline products across BD's interventional and medical segments.

As a global gateway hub integrating air and rail transportation, the Shanghai Pudong Airport Free Trade Zone has witnessed a surge in the import and export of medical devices.

In the first quarter of 2025, total trade in this category reached 1.13 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 397.36 percent.

Sources: pudong.gov.cn, Jiefang Daily