Medical Device Link.

Originally Published EMDM March/April 2003

INDUSTRY NEWS

It might sound like the name of a British anti-euro group, but EURobust is, in fact, firmly in the pan-European single-market camp. Sponsored by the European Commission, the unfortunately named EURobust initiative seeks to spur European manufacturers to introduce robust design practices. The methodology is of particular relevance to the medical device industry, where product quality and the control of process variables are key concerns, according to Eurocad Ltd. (Coventry, UK), a programme partner.

A product is qualified as robust if it performs all of its functions with minimal variation under all reasonable conditions and for a reasonable life span. A process is robust if there is little variation in the output despite significant variances in some of the inputs. Simply put, robustness defines a product or process that is unaffected by “noise.”

A recent survey confirmed that European companies currently lag behind their US and Japanese counterparts when it comes to awareness of robust-design issues, according to Eurocad. They may be missing an opportunity to improve productivity and reduce costs, if the experience at Carl Zeiss, another EURobust project partner, is any indication. “As a result of this project, Carl Zeiss expects to implement methods that will help the company to achieve [improvements] in tolerance-related activities, process design, and process control,” says Klaus Böcking, quality manager at the firm and internal EURobust programme coordinator. “We also anticipate the creation of data models and software tools that will support these changes in the design and manufacture of optics and optical modules.” A reduction in production costs and cycle times, and improved process quality and robustness, will result, adds Böcking.

EURobust is jointly sponsored through the European Commission’s GROWTH and IMS programmes. Boston Scientific is one of 15 partner companies from Sweden, Germany, Ireland, Spain, UK, and the Netherlands participating in the project, which will continue for another 30 months or so. Other companies interested in participating, or in learning how they might benefit from a robust design methodology, are encouraged to contact Eurocad. Information will also be posted at www.eurobust.net, although at the time of writing, a user name and password were required to gain access to the site.

To learn more, write Eurocad Projects Ltd., TechnoCentre, Puma Way, Coventry CV1 2TT, UK, or send an e-mail to Carolyn@eurocad-projects.co.uk.

 Norbert Sparrow

Copyright ©2003 European Medical Device Manufacturer