By Leah Sander
InkFreeNews

WARSAW — OrthoWorx President and CEO Robert E. “Bob” Vitoux Jr. said the organization’s purpose is to support the orthopedic industry’s social needs and its economic interests.

That ties into planning for spending $30 million the state is allocating to OrthoWorx for retaining the industry locally.

OrthoWorx got its start in 2009, with former Grace College President Dr. Ron Manahan being “the real driver” of it, said Vitoux.

“Dr. Manahan was the one that had heard about an organization in Indianapolis called BioCrossroads, (which) was the organization that we chose to really be a replication of,” said Vitoux. “They were serving the life science community (there).”

BioCrossroads’ co-founder David Johnson then helped start OrthoWorx in Kosciusko County.

Vitoux, who was named one of IBJ Media’s Indiana 250, or “most influential and impactful business leaders” in the state for 2023, describes OrthoWorx as “a catalytic partner” for orthopedics.

“What I mean by that is the industry prior to OrthoWorx really didn’t have anybody here locally that was looking over it,” he said. “The whole concept behind OrthoWorx is to have an organization that is daily responsible for the future of the industry.”

That falls into its missions of talent attraction and retention, development and innovation. While some might consider that only delves into direct economic help for orthopedic companies, it also involves assisting with a way of life for those employed by those businesses, as Vitoux explained.

“One of the most notable things early on was STEM education,” said Vitoux. “We funded the first study and then were the catalyst associated with getting STEM education into (Warsaw Community Schools). The schools have done the heavy lifting … but that’s a really proud area of our involvement over the years for sure.”

“US 30, the coalition, that stems back to a study that was done by OrthoWorx, the performing arts center at the high school, that stems back to some work that OrthoWorx was involved in,” added Vitoux.

The organization is financially supported by a grant from Lilly Endowment, funds from some investors and dues from its members, said Vitoux.

That includes members whose businesses aren’t orthopedic ones, but those which “benefit from the … industry being here,” he said.

One of OrthoWorx’s goals is helping the industry adjust to climate shifts within it, said Vitoux.

“One of the major changes that’s happening right now in the orthopedic industry is the move from the hospital scene to the ambulatory surgery center, known as the ASC,” said Vitoux. “Not every procedure’s moving there, but heavy, heavy predominance … so as a result, there are many changes that are taking place in the industry to accommodate that change.”

“Part of what we’re doing at OrthoWorx is to help (orthopedic companies) think about what those changes look like and as an industry see if there are things that we can do that can make the industry better,” Vitoux continued.

“One of the other areas that I would say that the industry is facing right now that’s very challenging is a squeeze on margins and an impact on their pricing,” he added. “That’s often what happens when an industry matures and … has to reinvent itself in a lot of ways … (The industry is moving) largely from a traditional metal and plastic industry to more of a medtech thinking.”

As for the $30 million OrthoWorx should be receiving from the state next year, Vitoux said planning is underway for how to best utilize it before leaders will present before the state how they wish to spend it.

“We know that the important areas of focus for us are we’ve got to have housing, we’ve got to have preschool and we’ve got to have really good education, but that’s a little bit like boiling the ocean, and so we’ve got to distill that down into where can we make tangible impact in those areas and at the same time continue to think about the amenities that are going to continue to attract our talent,” said Vitoux.

OrthoWorx is reaching out to entities like the Kosciusko Economic Development Corp., the Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce, the K21 Health Foundation and the city of Warsaw to help with the planning process, said Vitoux.

“I would reiterate what (State) Rep. (Craig) Snow has said, and that is … we’re really grateful for the $30 million, but we don’t expect that $30 million to be all that we’re dealing with,” added Vitoux. “Our goal is to turn $30 million into $300 million, and that’s another area I think that we’re very focused on is looking at (how we can add to the $30 million investment).”

That’s included reaching out to congressional leaders like U.S. Sen. Todd Young and U.S. Rep. Rudy Yakym.

“We also do have some work underway to engage an outside consultant to help us with the distillation process,” Vitoux noted.

“In a lot of ways, the $30 million is a little bit like winning the lottery,” said Vitoux. “All of a sudden you have friends you didn’t know that you had and you have ideas coming from people that you didn’t even know, but that’s the beauty of what we have ahead of us is … a community that really wants to embrace where we’re going.”

“To me, that’s the most important thing,” he added. “I think the quickest way to success is having a lot of great minds working together. The quickest way to failure is to do it on your own, and what we desire to do at OrthoWorx is really to be a collaborator and … to make others the hero. We would love nothing more than to be a great supporting cast member to others.”