Overview of Operations:
Boston Scientific is a medical device manufacturing corporation with facilities located in 40 different countries. Global expansion is extremely important for the company and there is a great potential for emerging markets. In 2019, Boston Scientific made $1.25 billion in revenue from their emerging markets (12% of annual sales), and there was an expectation of 15% growth in 2022. In 2023, the company generated net sales of $14.2 billion. The Boston Scientific Institutes for Advancing Science provide training for both products and customers. This assists in meeting the local needs and preferences of consumers. The corporation is continuing to expand.
Costa Rica’s Place in the Global Design:
There are two manufacturing facilities located in Costa Rica including in Heredia and Cartago. Eventually, there will even be a new facility established in La Lima. In 2010, medical and precision equipment were among Costa Rica’s top five exports and it grew to represent 8.3% of $9.3 billion of goods exported. Today, it is the top export (36% of total exports). Boston Scientific is one of the leading companies contributing to the growth of the medical device sector.
Specific Manufacturing Design in Costa Rica:
The facility in Cartago was fully established on February 16th, 2023. Overall, Boston Scientific manufacturing facilities have created 7,000 jobs over 19 years and it is projected that the new facilities will generate about 1,200 more jobs. The facility in Heredia is 270,000 sq ft and the new facility in La Lima is expected to be 430,556 sq ft.
Social, Economic & Environmental Impacts:
Socially, the corporation can work to create a positive learning and working environment for employees while also improving the lives of patients in Costa Rica. The corporation has also provided several education and volunteer opportunities. I can speculate that some negative impacts socially could include transnational corporations (TNCs), such as Boston Scientific, utilizing exploitive practices and prioritizing profits over the wellbeing of people, which could bring about strikes or uprisings. Economically, Boston Scientific has worked wonders for Costa Rica helping medical and precision equipment jump up to the top of the country’s exports. The corporation has also provided many jobs to the Costa Rican people. In a negative way, Boston Scientific’s success can cause economic competition with other corporations or businesses in the surrounding area. Environmentally, the corporation has reported that they have had an 80% increase in the solid waste recycle index, a 30% reduction in water use since 2009 and a diversion of 95% of non-recycled solid waste from landfills. The corporation is making global efforts including abolishing the use of wood-based paper at sites in Costa Rica. Being sourced from the company website, these statistics can also be biased. Even though efforts are being made, there are still many negative environmental impacts caused by large corporations. This can include increased greenhouse gas emissions at facilities, a large generation of industrial waste, and water and soil pollution.
Does Boston Scientific have a Neoliberal Framework?:
Boston Scientific was established on June 17th 1979 right before the period of the Reagan administration. At the time many neoliberal economic reforms were implemented. As a result, the entire reputation of corporations changed as they accumulated a lot of power through the acts of deregulation, non-intervention, free markets and free trade. I speculate that the growth of Boston Scientific may have been influenced by certain competition with regards to neoliberal practices. However, the Boston Scientific company policies today do not appear to reflect neoliberal-like qualities. Several government agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration, the Office of Public Affairs, the Federal Trade Commission and the like, have all been involved in regulating the company’s corporate practices. One of the corporation’s main goals, according to Vice President of Operations of Boston Scientific Costa Rica, Luis Javier Serrano is to “manufacture and deliver high quality products to Boston Scientific’s diverse global customers.”
All things considered, TNCs do have the ability to abuse their power by exploitive practices, prioritizing financial gain over the wellbeing of people, and hiding/censoring information from the public. This is especially possible the larger, more powerful and economically successful corporations become (eg. PG&E Hinkley Chromium Scandal). Sometimes some of these activities can be a bit risky. As much as a corporation might not want to regulate, deregulation might hurt them much more later.
Citations:
Boston Scientific Corporation. Boston Industrial Consulting. (2021, January 28). https://bicinc.com/case-studies/manufacturing/boston-scientific-corporation-costa-rica/
CINDE. (2024). Boston scientific expands its presence in Costa Rica with new operations in Cartago . cinde.org. https://www.cinde.org/en/essential-news/boston-scientific-expands-its-presence-in-costa-rica-with-new-operations-in-cartago
Hathaway, T. (2020). Neoliberalism as corporate power. Competition & Change, 24(3–4), 315–337. https://doi.org/10.1177/1024529420910382
Home. www.bostonscientific.com. (n.d.). https://www.bostonscientific.com/content/gwc/en-MY/home.html
Scientific, B. (2024). Advancing Science for Life – US. www.bostonscientific.com. https://www.bostonscientific.com/en-US/Home.html?_ga=2.174355938.1332778124.1706811931-1214100109.1706811931&_gl=1%2A12kekzj%2A_ga%2AMTIxNDEwMDEwOS4xNzA2ODExOTMx%2A_ga_759NN7RMMK%2AMTcwNjkxODgxNC44LjEuMTcwNjkxOTI3Ni4wLjAuMA..