Challenge

One doctor’s smart idea can generate a great medical product. GI Supply has had lots of these smart ideas. Founded by a gastroenterologist, the company had a direct line to the best talent in the field. GI Supply enjoyed a successful business in medical garments and now wanted to expand into durable medical devices. What they lacked was a partner who could help validate their ideas and develop them into successful medical devices. BOLTGROUP was chosen and a long-standing relationship was born.

One of GI Supply’s many interesting ideas was the development of an endoscopic marker—an FDA approved tattooing ink that could be injected through an endoscope to mark where tissue samples were taken for ongoing treatment. Sort of an innovative way to mark the spot.

Solution

An uncomplicated, patient-friendly name was needed. One that was simple, elegant, and descriptive. The brand and package design had to be economical and needed to reflect the attitude in the endoscopy suite—professional, calming, and friendly. And that’s how SPOT was born.

Medical packaging design is often overly somber and complex, a trend BOLTGROUP hoped to buck with the personality of the brand and packaging. The use of color and simple iconography creates a clear brand identity and brings an element of calm to a serious medical procedure. The bright green color of the cap also serves an important function in helping to locate the product in an intentionally dimly lit GI suite.

Result

Innovative aesthetics, ease of use, and manufacturing cost were all optimized by the BOLTGROUP team. Almost immediately the results proved themselves, becoming the most successful product launch in the company’s history. The speed to market made possible by tapping into off-the-shelf components as part of the design solution prevented other manufacturers from entering the marketplace until a beachhead had been established, giving SPOT a category exclusive.

Using stock materials also reduced the cost of packaging, making it an economical solution for doctors. IDSA judges awarded the innovative design with the coveted IDEA Gold Award and the Catalyst Design for Business award.

Now, after more than 20 years of use, SPOT has benefited patients in over 5 million cases worldwide, enabling polyps to be marked for easier identification during a future procedure.

To see more case studies for GI Supply, visit Medical Design Excellence.