Supplier landscape

Known for price competitiveness, China serves as a contract manufacturer for international NGOs and social enterprises such as Motivation, UCP Wheelchairs and LDS Charities. Global brands such as Rehasense and Ottobock have manufacturing plants in China. The average export price for manual wheelchairs (including transport wheelchairs) in 2022 was around US$80 per unit, a figure that has remained steady since 2017 [32].

The Chinese wheelchair industry is fragmented with low market concentration, with the majority being small-scale businesses. According to the survey, a significant number of manufacturers report low sales volumes, with around 80 per cent of suppliers having annual sales of less than US$5 million. This high level of market fragmentation creates pressure on suppliers to remain cost-competitive, which may lead to varied approaches in product design, materials, and production processes as companies seek to differentiate themselves and expand their market share [33].

In China, manual wheelchairs are classified as Class II medical devices. To obtain a license, producers must submit their quality inspection reports and receive approval from NMPA. Clinical trials are not required for manual wheelchairs, as they are exempted along with a list of other medical products, to speed up market availability. According to the China NMPA website in October 2024, 223 certified manual wheelchair products are held by 194 different companies across China.

Wheelchair manufacturing is concentrated in Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region, Guangdong, and the Jiangsu province.

The Hebei region focuses on low-end products, the Guangdong region on low-to-mid end products (between US$35-US$100), and the Jiangsu region on high-end products (above US$100).

Table 8: Top 5 cities with the highest number of medical-grade manual wheelchair suppliers.

City Province Percentage
Foshan Guangdong 19%
Tianjin Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region 12%
Hengshui Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region 8%
Danyang Jiangsu 4%
Langfang Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region 4%
Total: 47%

Seven manufacturers in the survey reported having medically certified manual wheelchairs and presence in LMICs. Among these, both Dongfang and Kaiyang have an annual production capacity of over 600,000 manual wheelchairs and have shown strong interest in expanding into LMICs. However, few suppliers have registered their products in LMICs. Among the 20 respondents that sell to LMICs, only one has products registered in at least one country. They primarily sell through distributors and exporters at ex- factory prices and do not handle in-country product registration.

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Table 9: Survey respondents with medical-certified manual wheelchairs and footprints in LMICs

Company Introduction LMIC footprint Quality
Dongfang (Foshan)
  • Annual revenue: > US$50 mn
  • Annual revenue to LMICs: US$2 mn- US$5 mn
  • Annual capacity (Units): 600,000
  • 20-50 countries, including Algeria, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Cameroon, Chad, Eswatini, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, India, Iran, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Lesotho, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Swaziland, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and Zambia
  • Products not registered in LMICs yet
  • CE
  • FDA
  • ISO 9001
  • ISO 13485
Hongguan (Hengshui)
  • Annual revenue: US$1-5 mn
  • Annual revenue to LMICs: US$0.5- US$2 mn
  • Annual capacity (Units): 150,000
  • <20 countries including Angola, India, Myanmar, the Philippines, among others
  • Products not registered in LMICs yet
  • ISO 13485
Kaiyang (Foshan)
  • Annual revenue: > US$50 mn
  • Annual revenue to LMICs: Information is not available. But 20% of the total sales goes to US and Europe market and 80% to rest of the world.
  • Annual capacity (Units): 800,000
  • 50-100 countries
  • Focus on the Southeast Asia region, with both Viet Nam and Thailand having individual orders valued at US$7 mn.
  • Product registration in LMICs information is not available
  • CE
  • FDA
  • ISO 9001
  • ISO 13485
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Kangyijian (Hengshui)
  • Annual revenue: US$1-US$5 mn
  • Annual revenue to LMICs: US$ <0.5 million
  • Annual capacity (Units): 30,000
  • <20 countries
  • Focus on the Southeast Asia region, such as Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Viet Nam, among others.
  • Products not registered in LMICs yet
  • None
New Century (Hengshui)
  • Annual revenue: US$1- US$5 mn
  • Annual revenue to LMICs: US$0.5- US$2 mn
  • Annual capacity (Units): 10,000
  • Annual revenue: US$1-US$5 million
  • Annual revenue to LMICs: US$ <0.5 million
  • Annual capacity (Units): 100,000
  • <20 countries, including Algeria, the Philippines, Viet Nam, etc.
  • Products not registered in LMICs yet
  • CE
  • ISO 9001
  • ISO 13485
  • CE
Xiangrun (Hengshui)
  • Annual revenue: US$1- US$5 million
  • Annual revenue to LMICs: US$ < million
  • Annual capacity (Units): 100,000
  • <20 countries including Cambodia, India, Myanmar, the Philippines, Pakistan, Viet Nam
  • Product registered in India, the Philippines and Viet Nam
  • CE
Zhongjin (Changzhou)
  • Annual revenue: Not available
  • Annual revenue to LMICs: Not available
  • Annual capacity (Units): Not available
  • Multiple LMICs
  • CE
  • FDA
  • ISO 9001
  • ISO 13485
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Four publicly listed medical equipment companies also have medical-certified manual wheelchairs.

Table 10: Public listed companies with medical-certified manual wheelchair business segments

Company Annual revenue and exports percentage Wheelchair segment introduction Flagship products outside wheelchairs Global presence
Cofoe (Hunan, Changsha) [34]
  • RMB2.7 billion (~US$380 mn)
  • Export per centage data are not available
  • The annual revenue of rehabilitation products (including manual wheelchairs) in 2023 is RMB 773 million (~US$109 mn), representing 27% of the total and a 30% increase from 2022.
  • Other flagship products include hearing aids, in vitro diagnostic products and diagnostic and respiratory products such as blood pressure monitors.
  • Multiple LMICs
HL Corp (Shenzhen, Guangdong) [33]
  • RMB900 million (US$126 mn)
  • 59 per cent are exports
  • All sell through OEM model to leading global wheelchair brands such as Sunrise and Invacare.
  • The annual revenue of rehabilitation products (including manual wheelchairs) in 2023 is RMB200 mn (~US$28 mn), 22 per cent of total.
  • The annual capacity for wheelchairs (incl. both powered and manual) is 150,000 units in 2022.
  • Components for bicycles: some of its products have highest market share worldwide.
  • Primarily Europe, the US and Asia, with other regions such as Africa.
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Intco (Zhenjiang, Jiangsu) [35]
  • RMB6.9 bn (~US$970 mn)
  • 87 per cent are exports
  • The annual capacity for wheelchairs (incl. both powered and manual) is 620,000 units in 2023.
  • The sales revenue of rehabilitation products in 2023 is RMB395 mn (~US$56 mn), 5.7% of total.
  • Medical consumables such as disposable gloves, masks, face shields, apparel, and cold and hot patches.
  • 120 countries across Europe, America, Asia, Africa and Oceania.
  • LMIC footprint includes Bolivia, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Libya, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Nigeria, and Venezuela, among others
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Yuwell (Danyang, Jiangsu) [36]
  • RMB8 bn (~US$1.1 bn)
  • 9% are exports
  • The sales revenue for rehabilitation and mobility products in 2023 is around US$170 mn, 15% of the total.
  • 42% of the company sales come from respiratory products and 21% from medical diagnostic products.
  • 131 countries worldwide

A few other manufacturers also have all commonly used international certifications (all CE, FDA, and ISO), domestically certified licenses for manual wheelchairs and international sales experience. However, since they did not participate in the survey, detailed information on their capacity and sales is not available. For reference, the company list is provided here for readers wishing for more information and to make contact.

Table 11: Other wheelchair manufacturers identified with all three CE, FDA and ISO certifications

Company Global footprint Official website
Caremax (Foshan, Guangdong) Over 50 countries https://www.caremax-med.com/
Dayang (Foshan, Guangdong) Across Asia, Europe, North America, South America and Oceania. https://www.dayangyiliao.com/
Feiyang (Foshan, Guangdong) Around 15% of the sales goes to South America and 15% in Southeast Asia https://feiyangmed.en.alibaba.com/
First Medical (Zhongshan, Guangdong) Information not available http://en.fstmed.com/
JBH (Nanjing, Jiangsu) Countries include US, Canada, Germany, Spain https://www.jbhwheelchair.com/
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