Agreed Elisabeth Staudinger, president of Siemens Healthineers Asia-Pacific, who values the role of the CIIE in strengthening relations with stakeholders to "leverage the medical ecosystem".

"Since the beginning, the platform is and has been an excellent opportunity to introduce Siemens Healthineers, our product range and technologies, to a broader public," she said, adding that several newly developed products and technological innovations in oncological care, tele-healthcare and public health will debut at the upcoming event.

For the German healthcare technologies provider, highlights include displaying the world's first photon-counting computerized tomography or CT, an imaging technology that increases sensitivity and safety in CT examinations and breaks existing barriers of radiation and contrast dose.

At the fair, the company will stage the international debut of a scanner featuring super wide field of view that enables whole-body dynamic scanning within 15 seconds, leaving no cancer cells undetected. A new generation angiography system that delivers more stable and optimal images will also make a premier appearance in China.

The company is also accelerating the deployment of its innovative offerings by capitalizing on the opportunities made possible by the CIIE. The latest-generation interventional robot, a great attraction at the third CIIE, has completed its first procedure in Boao and in July 2021 was granted access to the special review for innovative medical devices by the National Medical Products Administration.

"Within a time frame of less than one year, the product has continuously updated its status in the review and approval process," Staudinger said.

"It promises to bring revolutionary therapies and new hope to patients and become the first imported robot for interventional procedures to be granted market approval in China."

In the healthcare realm, examples abound for the wish that "exhibits turned into merchandise", a goal the CIIE organizers aim to achieve. For pharmaceutical company GSK, this is exemplified by the availability of a shingles vaccine in more than 200 cities in China, after its consecutive presence during the second and third CIIE events.

Also, after its inaugural presence at the third CIIE in 2020, a medicine for the treatment of HIV in China was approved by the National Medical Products Administration in March this year and officially launched in China in June. It will also be showcased officially during this year's expo.

"We look forward to seizing the development opportunities in the Chinese market through this important annual event. We are working with all the stakeholders," said Cecilia Qi, vice-president and general manager of pharma and vaccines for GSK China.

"This will help make medical and healthcare solutions more accurate, accessible and affordable, further benefitting Chinese patients and supporting the 'Healthy China 2030' vision".

For many, the CIIE is a continuum of first of its kind and an avenue to turn ideas into implementation, said Felix Gutsche, president and CEO of pharma producer Boehringer Ingelheim China.

The company sees itself as a witness and beneficiary of the event's spillover effect. Its Total Stroke Solutions has evolved from a conceptual prototype showcased at the inaugural CIIE into the current set of total solutions covering seven modules.

"Overall, the CIIE has very positive effect on the visibility of our clinical programs," Gutsche said. "We've got a lot of attention and feedback from various provincial governments and city governments."