Medical Device Link.

Originally Published EMDM November 2003

INDUSTRY NEWS

A three-year research grant has been awarded to the National Physical Laboratory (NPL; Teddington, Middx, UK) following its successful work in plastics impact prediction. The second phase, funded by the UK Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), will look at the performance of plastics under impact loading. Although the automotive, aerospace, and mass transit sectors will be the primary beneficiaries, the healthcare industry also stands to benefit, according to the NPL.

The research delves into safety-critical applications by evaluating material models. The project will develop and standardize test methods for measuring and analyzing data, as well as establish new methods to determine the failure properties of tough plastics. By recognizing their failure behaviour, limits in the deformation and energy absorption of a component can be predicted in the design process. Product costs and time to market can be reduced as a result.
“The principal aim is to show how finite-element analysis (FEA) can be successfully used to predict the behaviour of plastics under impact loading,” says Greg Dean, NPL project leader. “Designers using FEA packages such as Abacus, Oasys, and others will be immediately interested in the project outputs.”

Industry leaders such as Rapra Technology, the polymer research and test laboratory, and Land Rover, the automotive manufacturer, are working closely with NPL on this project.

NPL is asking medical device manufacturers, medical plastics moulders, and healthcare companies to join the Industrial Advisory Group, which meets every six months. Industry partners stand to benefit from the project results by working directly with NPL on a related “studio project.” These small ventures, which attract 50% DTI funding, may evaluate specific materials or product types. “Experimental results and the work on testing protocols will have an impact on materials suppliers and their customers” in a range of industries, adds Dean.

For more information, contact National Physical Laboratory, Teddington, Middx TW11 0LW, UK; phone: +44 1 939 252428; e-mail: sward@rapra.net; Internet: www.npl.co.uk. 

Laura Angela Bagnetto

Copyright ©2003 European Medical Device Manufacturer