DP World's planned expansion at the Port of Caucedo is poised to support the Dominican Republic's growing role in nearshored medtech manufacturing.
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESS Newswire / January 15, 2026 / The Dominican Republic is often framed through the lens of tourism. But behind the beaches, the country has built something far more industrial - a globally connected, export-driven life sciences engine that is now shaping nearshoring decisions across the Americas.
Over the past two decades, the Dominican Republic has steadily attracted medical device and pharmaceutical manufacturing into its network of free zones, supported by predictable incentives, proximity to the U.S., and a growing base of skilled technical talent. A recent U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) executive briefing notes that government support for free trade zones has been central to this success, with dozens of industrial parks hosting hundreds of companies - and a large share of free zone exports tied to pharmaceuticals and medical instruments.
Now, the country's next chapter is taking shape at the Port of Caucedo - where DP World's planned Special Economic Zone (SEZ) expansion is designed to create a new, integrated logistics-industrial ecosystem that is well-positioned to serve high-value, time-sensitive sectors like medtech.
The free zone playbook that turned policy into production
The Dominican Republic's rise did not happen by accident. It was built through deliberate industrial policy - especially the expansion of free zones that lowered barriers for global manufacturers and helped create "plug-and-play" operating environments.
By 2023, the country had 87 industrial parks and 820 companies operating in free trade zones, according to the USITC briefing. Those zones are not limited to one sector, but life sciences has become a defining strength. Dominican Republic Free Zones (the National Free Zones Council's platform) describes the medical device sector as a major export driver, with 40+ manufacturers and 35,000+ direct jobs, noting that medical device manufacturing represents 31% of all Free Zone exports and US$2.6billion in 2023 alone.
That scale matters because medtech manufacturing is operationally demanding, requiring regulated inputs, validated processes, cleanroom standards, and strict traceability expectations. Countries that win in medtech tend to pair incentives with execution - e.g., consistent rules, reliable utilities, quality systems' maturity, and a workforce that can support precision manufacturing.
Why global medtech firms keep choosing the Dominican Republic
As the sector matured, the country became more than a low-cost assembly destination. It evolved into a manufacturing base that global companies could expand within.
Multiple sources point to the depth of the Dominican Republic's medtech footprint, including the presence of major global manufacturers operating in-country.
Just as importantly, the Dominican Republic's location supports speed-to-market. Manufacturers serving North American customers can reduce transit time and inventory pressure compared with longer Asia-based supply chains, while still operating within an established export platform.
Trade frameworks have helped reinforce that advantage. The Dominican Republic participates in CAFTA-DR, the free trade agreement linking the U.S., the Dominican Republic, and several Central American countries. For exporters, that can support more predictable access and streamlined cross-border trade - an increasingly valuable attribute in an era where supply chains are being redesigned for resilience, not just cost.
Skilled labor, quality culture, and the "second-order" advantages
Medtech growth tends to compound. Once a few anchor companies establish operations, they bring suppliers, auditors, and specialized service providers with them. Over time, that creates second-order advantages that are hard to replicate quickly elsewhere:
A deeper talent pool trained in regulated manufacturing environments
Shared supplier ecosystems for packaging, plastics, sterilization, and components
Quality and compliance familiarity that improves ramp-up times for new facilities
A reputation flywheel that reduces perceived risk for new entrants
This is how "under-the-radar" hubs become durable. The Dominican Republic is no longer emerging - it is scaling.
The next opportunity: a port-to-zone model built for high-value manufacturing
As the country's medtech base grows, the next constraint often becomes logistics: speed, reliability, storage, and integration across inbound materials and outbound finished goods.
That is where the next phase of development for DP World's operations at the Port of Caucedo becomes strategically relevant.
In May 2025, DP World signed a historic agreement with the Dominican government to expand the Port of Caucedo and the adjacent Free Trade Zone, increasing terminal handling capacity and developing 225 hectares of integrated logistics and industrial infrastructure as part of an ESG-driven SEZ.
The planned SEZ includes new industrial buildings and a multimodal logistics network intended to attract manufacturers looking for a turnkey environment - and it is being positioned specifically to support nearshoring demand.
For medtech manufacturers, the value of this model is straightforward:
Faster, simpler movement between production, storage, and export gateways
Reduced dwell time for high-value inputs and finished goods
Better visibility and control across inventory, documentation, and handoffs
A platform for value-added logistics, including kitting, postponement, and specialized handling
And because medtech is often built around service levels and reliability (not just unit cost), an integrated port-SEZ ecosystem can be a competitive advantage in its own right.
Workforce development that keeps pace with advanced manufacturing
Manufacturing growth is only as durable as the talent pipeline behind it. DP World's planned expansion emphasizes workforce development through the DP World Academy and other higher education partnerships, with training designed to build logistics and supply chain competencies aligned to future demand.
For medtech companies, that focus is not peripheral - it is core. As facilities become more automated and compliance expectations rise, the labor market must keep pace with new roles in quality systems, equipment maintenance, planning, and specialized warehousing.
Why this matters now for nearshoring decision-makers
The nearshoring conversation is no longer theoretical. Procurement leaders and operations executives are actively rebalancing footprints to reduce risk, improve responsiveness, and control landed cost volatility.
The Dominican Republic offers a compelling mix: an established free zone platform, a growing medtech manufacturing base, proximity to the U.S., and a trade framework that supports export momentum.
DP World's planned SEZ expansion builds on those national strengths - creating infrastructure designed to connect advanced manufacturing directly to a high-performance trade gateway, while embedding sustainability, workforce readiness, and long-term competitiveness into the model.
A quiet giant - becoming harder to ignore
For years, the Dominican Republic's medtech rise has been a "quiet" story: visible to operators in the sector, less visible to broader audiences. But the underlying fundamentals are now large enough - and strategic enough - that they are changing how companies think about manufacturing placement in the Americas.
As the country moves into its next phase, the opportunity is not just to manufacture more devices. It is to build a deeper, faster, more integrated ecosystem - where medtech firms can produce at scale, ship with speed, and operate with the predictability that regulated industries require.
And with the next phase of development planned for DP World, the Dominican Republic's medtech story may not stay quiet for much longer.
Learn more about DP World's port and economic zone operations in the Dominican Republic
View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from DP World on 3blmedia.com.
Contact Info:
Spokesperson: DP World
Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/dp-world
Email: info@3blmedia.com
SOURCE: DP World
View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire:
https://www.accessnewswire.com/newsroom/en/business-and-professional-services/how-the-dominican-republic-became-a-quiet-giant-in-medtech-manuf-1127464
