Simon has 30 years of medical device experience across multiple specialties, with a particular interest in orthopaedics. He has a strong knowledge of sales, marketing, operational and general management, in strategic and board level roles in UK and international arenas. Having set up and run many successful businesses, Simon is naturally entrepreneurial.

Natalie has worked in the healthcare industry for over 20 years, where she has worked in both commercial and compliance management roles for med tech and pharmaceutical companies. She brings extensive experience in project management, digital communications, system and process set up, and product commercialisation to Garland Surgical.

John is a Chartered Engineer, a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, and has been developing orthopaedic implants and instrumentation for over 22 years.  With a Master’s degree in Medical and Life Sciences Engineering, he has designed devices for total hip, knee, and ankle replacement, as well as trauma nails, plates and screws.  John’s understanding of the orthopaedic device development process, and his ability to translate user needs into innovative solutions, will be critical as we deliver the MaltaHip to the market.

Nikki is our Finance Administrator, responsible for day-to-day finance operations, reporting and control.  Having spent the last 8 years running her own successful business and over 10 years prior to that working in senior finance roles within the corporate sector, Nikki brings a wealth of finance experience to the Garland team

Prof Pierre Schembri-Wismayer graduated as a medical doctor in 1991 from the University of Malta and received his PhD in cellular oncology from Glasgow University in 2000 in association with the Beatson Institute for Cancer Research. An Associate Professor in Anatomy in the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery in the University of Malta, for many years he was the Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST) expert in the life sciences. He was involved in bringing in more than €1.5 million worth of grant funding to the University and sits on the Management Committee of 3 European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) actions.

He is interested in anatomical biomechanics, writing proposals and continues to participate in several medical device design MCST projects. He is one of the inventors of the MaltaHip, having originated the idea.  

Donald Dalli is a warranted mechanical engineer and one of the inventors of the MaltaHip implant. He has engineering experience in the fields of medical device development, robotics, and industrial automation. During his Bachler and Master’s degrees at the University of Malta, Donald worked on the development of anthropomorphic robot hands. Donald joined a newly set up branch company in Malta, IBG Automation, as a robotics engineer in 2015 whilst reading for his Master’s degree. Donald was appointed as the lead researcher of the MaltaHIP (nationally funded project) within the Department of Metallurgy and Materials Engineering at the University of Malta in 2016. The project was also the main theme for Donald’s PhD studies, for which he received his doctoral degree in 2021. Donald serves the role of the Managing Director at IBG Automation Malta. 

Pierluigi Mollicone is an Associate Professor at the University of Malta (UM). He graduated with a First Class B.Eng.(Hons) degree in Mechanical Engineering from UM in 2002 and was awarded a Doctoral (PhD) Degree from the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow (U.K.) in 2007. He has worked in industry before and after his postgraduate studies and has been an academic at UM since 2008. His research and teaching revolve around the application of Finite Element Analysis (FEA) for stress analysis of mechanical components and thermo-mechanical processes. He has successfully managed research projects having secured funding from national, EU programmes and industry.  His involvement with the MaltaHip as a co-investigator started in 2015 and he is one of the inventors of the implant.

Anton Bartolo has been with the University of Malta since September 2009 as Director for Corporate Research and Knowledge Transfer. He is also the Managing Director of Malta University Innovation Portfolio Ltd, an Executive Director of FLASC B.V. and a Director of De Novo Cell Ltd. Anton received a B.Elec.Eng. (Hons) from the University of Malta in 1989, and a M.S. and Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from The Ohio State University, in 1994 and 1998.  Anton is a member of the Association of European Science and Technology Transfer Professionals (ASTP), the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the Malta Chamber of Engineers.

Joseph Buhagiar is an academic, warranted engineer and Honorary Consul of the Republic of Colombia in Malta. He received his B.Eng (Hons) degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Malta in 2003. He joined the Department of Metallurgy and Materials Engineering of the University of Malta as an assistant lecturer in 2004 and in 2008 he received a PhD degree from the University of Birmingham (UK). Following his PhD studies he became a University of Malta lecturer, was promoted to senior lecturer in 2013 and associate professor in 2016. Joseph’s research revolves around biomaterials, corrosion science, surface engineering and tribo-corrosion. He is one of the inventors of the MaltaHip implant.

Gina Melchner supports Garland Surgical as an NLC Venture Partner, thereby providing the link between the venture and NLC's experience and services. Gina is responsible for multiple NLC Medtech ventures and also leads the Medtech Domain within NLC's Venture Creation engine. Before joining NLC in February 2020, Gina worked at Biogeneration Ventures in the Netherlands and at Oliver Wyman in Germany. Her academic background includes a Masters degree in Biotechnology from ETH Zurich.

Ryan qualified in medicine from the University of Malta in 2002, and subsequently gained his Masters in Orthopaedic Engineering from Cardiff University and FRCS (Trauma & Orthopaedics) in 2013.  In 2014 he gained European board fellowship in Orthopaedics & Trauma ( FEBOT) and in 2015 his specialisation in Trauma & Orthopaedics, having spent 6 years of Orthopaedic training in both Malta and Oxford. He was appointed as a Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon in the Department of Trauma, Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine at Mater Dei Hospital, Malta, in 2017.

His area of interests are lower limb arthroplasty, particularly primary and revision hip surgery, as well as pelvic and acetabular trauma surgery.

Ryan is the current president of the Association of Orthopaedic & Trauma Surgeons of Malta (AOTSM) and visiting assistant lecturer at the University of Malta Medical School.  He is also a member of the European Hip Society and AOTrauma.

Professor Davis is a Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon at the prestigious Royal Orthopaedic Hospital, Birmingham and leads the world-renowned arthroplasty unit. He works closely with orthopaedic implant companies in developing computer navigation/robotics and bearing surfaces in hip replacement in an effort to improve patient's outcomes following their surgery.

Bruce is a US based Regulatory Affairs and Quality Assurance expert. He also has extensive experience in operations and clinical research, as well as serving on corporate compliance committees. He has developed and led global complaint management, MDR and Vigilance reporting, corporate audit functions, and implemented UDI across a global network.

Bob brings over 40 years of experience in sales, marketing and strategic planning to our advisory board. Having held senior management and board level roles in orthopaedics and aerospace markets working in Europe, North America and Asia, Bob will assist in the commercialisation and market penetration of the Malta Hip.

Manish is an Investor, having been involved in venture capital and private equity for nearly two decades, both as an investor and a consultant.