Before SHL emerged as a leader in the drug delivery industry, the company started as a trading business in Taiwan, led by two Swedish entrepreneurs - Roger Samuelsson and Martin Jelf.
As more colleagues joined the team, SHL relocated to a larger office in Xhizhi, New Taipei. Roger and several colleagues helped to assemble the furniture in the new office.
SHL struck its first autoinjector business deal with a pharmaceutical company in 1996. From there, Roger developed a deep passion for making products that, as Roger put it, “help people.”
In becoming ISO-certified, SHL proved its determination for high quality standards in all aspects of its business operations.
By the tenth anniversary, SHL had grown from a duo to an organization consisting of several teams. The entire company developed a tight-knit, family-like working culture under Roger’s leadership.
Roger’s proactiveness in setting up in-house production processes gained the trust of many customers. A long-time customer recalls how Roger decided to manufacture springs in-house.
In need of a bigger location, Roger set out and found the right space in Taoyuan.
In 2006, SHL’s prized autoinjector – DAI®, won the Taiwan Excellence Award for its innovative design. In addition, SHL received the Taoyuan EverGreen Award from the government for corporate longevity.
The addition of a brand-new tooling center indicated SHL’s response to the rising autoinjector market demands. This also showed SHL’s determination to strengthen our in-house capabilities.
The 20-year milestone marked a series of events that reminisced past achievements. A notable pharmaceutical partner presented SHL with an excellence award for quality in manufacturing.
With means to cultivate local talent, SHL signed a memorandum with a well-known local university (NTUT) to launch an apprentice program. In the following year, SHL donated a CNC machine to a local high school.
The expansion of SHL’s Nankan site was to accommodate its growing in-house production operations. Key in-house capabilities included CNC machining, tooling, automation, and logistics.
SHL entered a strategic partnership with healthcare startup QuiO to expand its scope in the drug delivery industry through the utilization of digital technologies.
SHL Group set up a new headquarters for its drug delivery operations, SHL Medical, in Zug, Switzerland. To better address SHL’s growing business, the change was meant to bring SHL closer to many of its customers.
SHL celebrated its 30th birthday with the grand opening of its Liufu building in Taoyuan. Officials from the Taiwan government supported the event in recognition of SHL’s long-term contributions to the community.
SHL’s partner in connected pen injectors, Innovation Zed, signed an agreement to commercialize InsuCHECK Connect, a connected device for pen injectors. This would also solidify SHL’s presence in the digital health space.
SHL acquired Weibel CDS, a medical technology company that offers innovative products and solutions for drug delivery and novel packaging.
SHL’s anticipates several customer combination product launches based on customized versions of SHL’s preconfigured Molly® autoinjector technology. This includes the first systemic therapy in the higher volume range (≥2.0 mL).