At AdvaMed’s The MedTech Conference, company executives said they’re bracing for disruption by investing in inventory, scenario planning and their relationships with chip suppliers.

BOSTON — In an era of heightened tariff volatility and geopolitical risk, medtech companies are rewriting their supply chain playbooks to ensure patients have uninterrupted access to critical therapies, executives said Monday at AdvaMed’s The MedTech Conference.

After coping with semiconductor shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic and tariff pressures, medtech companies are facing another semiconductor crisis in 2026, said Jon Rennert, chairman of Zoll Medical, a maker of automated external defibrillators and other devices for emergency and critical care. The artificial intelligence infrastructure buildout has medical device makers competing with demand from data centers for semiconductor chips.

“There's been more supply chain disruption to the medtech industry in the last five years than at any point that I've seen in my career, and I imagine many of you feel the same way,” Rennert told a conference audience.

To ensure consistent supply, Zoll has made strategic investments in inventory, Rennert said. While expensive, the strategy buys lead time and the ability to respond when things change.

“Just-in-time inventory was never really a big deal in healthcare. I would say to the degree that it ever was, it's dead now,” Rennert said.

Zoll has worked to protect its critical supply of electronics by helping chip suppliers understand the importance of its devices to patients. Historically, the company didn’t have relationships with leading chip suppliers, instead buying its electronic boards from contract manufacturers.

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