Microbiological analysis is required for the detection of contamination and the maintenance of high-quality standards. Environmental monitoring, water tests, and other test methods benefit healthcare facilities, prisons, food handlers and restaurants, laboratories, blood processing centers, and other industries. Microbial testing is the proven first line of defense against pathogenic bacteria and toxins and a public health tool.
The recent technological advancements are making these tests faster, more accurate, and affordable for a more extensive consumer base, driving the growth of the microbiology testing market. Microbiology has always been a field of excitement that has promised a lot about preventing, diagnosing, and treating infectious diseases in the healthcare field.
In addition to technological advancements that have significantly improved the efficiency of microbiology testing by introducing new tests by some of the leading organizations in the microbiology testing market is poised to influence global demand positively. This is where MCI comes into the spotlight.
Under the expertise of Mauren Monge Mora, President, MCI is committed to providing quality testing services meeting customer needs and regulatory requirements by following good professional practices and continuous improvement.
In an interview with Insights Care, Mauren Monge Mora sheds light on the professional tenure, highlighting the USPs and his opinions on the future of MCI Laboratory in the healthcare industry.
Please brief us about your company, its USPs, and how it is are currently positioned as a reliable firm in the healthcare sector.
MCI is a quality control laboratory dedicated to help its medical devices manufacturer´s customers prove compliance for their cleanrooms, associated systems, and products through environmental microbial testing, compressed gas, water, and product testing.
We have been helping our customers in this area for 11 years. We have become a strategic partner on the startups of their facilities, systems, production processes, and continuing operations, projects, and problem-solving tactics. It has been possible due to our knowledge of how it feels to be in a customer´s shoes.
Before starting this business, my partners and I were all involved in the environmental monitoring of cleanrooms and products, leading with the execution of overly ambitious projects for medical devices industries located in Costa Rica and with headquarters in various places worldwide.
This experience gave us invaluable information regarding real needs related to flexibility, high quality and reliable laboratory results, and cost-effective solutions.
Shed some light on your offerings and how they impact the industry and your clients?
Our customers can schedule their cleanroom startups, a routine environmental monitoring program for viable and non-viable, compressed gas and water testing, and microbiological and endotoxin tests for products. Identification of species of main microorganisms and sterility tests are also available.
Our extended schedule, ISO 17025 accredited quality system, specialized trained staff, and focus on customer needs make our laboratory the preferred choice for many Costa Rica life sciences cluster medical device manufacturers.
Please brief us about your professional tenure and your contribution to the company’s success in the industry.
My partners in this business and I had the idea to offer to the local market of medical device manufacturers a reliable and value-added solution for its need to comply with international regulations related to cleanrooms performance and microbiological product safety.
We used our previous experience and knowledge about these regulations to make an offer that fulfils this need. Our experience with different medical products, sterilization methods, biocontamination control strategies has become in creativity to help our customers with a problem-solving approach.
Being an experienced leader, share your opinion on how the adoption of modern technologies has impacted the industry and how is your company riding the technology wave?
Communication capacity has been, for humans, the key evolution instrument. In the IoT era, it is the same. However, the challenge seems to be keeping the humanity of communication while providing our customers with all the valuable information they need in real-time and with high quality. MCI has invested in communication strategies with our customers, so they are connected in real-time with laboratory tasks.
Our commitment is to focus our attention on the feedback obtained from them, so we can keep moving towards innovative ways to catch up with customer needs promptly.
Considering the example of the COVID-19, how do you plan to navigate through similar situations in the future?
Pandemic for the medical device industry and related activities has been a challenge in a quite different and contradictory manner. We have been dealing with an increase of testing requests from our customers, while an unstable crew due to medical leavings of personnel and the massive impact of supply chain delays on costs and service continuity were hitting us.
Our strategic plan changes to afford these specific subjects in a pandemic like situation. The main change has been the mindset of being ready for impossible to predict events.
What would be your advice to budding entrepreneurs who aspire to venture into the healthcare space?
For any entrepreneurship, the basic advice is to be ready for challenging work, keep determination and faith, and be prepared for failure. I believe the last is the most challenging part; no one wants to fail. However, it is the only way to learn, and learning is the real success.
Health care space could be considered a failure-free environment; it should be however, it is not, and COVID-19 reminded us of this.
We all did our best with what we had, and we will be more prepared for the next challenge. Historically, we were secured on standards and regulations; knowing them keeps us current and adjust to modern technology and changes slowly, but now we must adapt faster, wiser, and more pragmatic way than ever.
Keeping our decisions focused on human beings and earth as a whole creature might look obvious. However, it is not. Creating mechanisms to get this into reality in our communities is essential, no matter what the space is.
How do you envision scaling your organization’ operations and offerings in 2022 and beyond?
We are constantly hearing the voice of the customer. With the struggles getting consumables from outside the country, we are in the capacity to self-supply some of the most critical and offering them to our customers has allowed us to obtain new customers too.
Please give us a few testimonials of your clients/customers and a list of awards/recognitions that accurately highlight your organization’s position in the market.
MCI has helped some of the medical device manufacturers located in Costa Rica start their operations for the first time in the country and transfer to new or extended facilities. Companies located in different free trade zones in Costa Rica have been part of MCI history, from cleanroom and processes startup to routine control and new projects.
Our quality system was awarded by ECA (Ente Costarricense de Acreditación, certifying organism recognized internationally) in 2014 for a quality system’s audit without any observation nor non-conformance and is fully compliant with ISO 17025 requirements.
We obtained certification of “Esencial Costa Rica,” country brand design to assure local companies complies with the best practices in social and environmental responsibility business and compete locally and internationally.
Also, in 2021, Coyol Free Zone, catalogued as the best free zone in the Americas, and dedicated to the medical device industry in Costa Rica, awarded us with one of the two prizes to the best two suppliers for the companies settle down in it.
