Medical Device Link.

MEDTEC 2006

To the untrained eye, a spring doesn’t seem to hold much mystery. Fortunately, design engineers understand that a spring can be critical to the overall performance of a finished product and that a great deal of thought goes into the component’s material selection and its fabrication. In today’s economic environment, however, performance requirements must be balanced against cost, and off-shoring the production of springs and other parts to low-wage countries is often too tempting to resist. Albion Spring Company, Ltd. (West Bromwich, W Midlands, UK) has suffered—and benefited—from that calculus.

“We had been supplying springs to a UK company for several years. Then one day they decided to switch production to China,” says Albion Spring sales director Ivan Walters. “We continued to supply them with parts, but at reduced volumes.” A few months later, the firm, which is not involved in medical devices, began encountering problems.

“The springs were failing in the field,” recounts Walters. “The company asked us to start supplying springs again, and at greater volumes than before.” Albion, like most Western companies, can’t compete with Chinese manufacturers on the basis of cost. Where it does excel is in the quality of its products. “We have developed expertise over the years when it comes to sourcing materials and fabricating springs, and the company has invested in state-of-the-art production and testing equipment,” explains Walters. Ensuring quality is a costly proposition, but, as many companies have found out, it’s well worth it in the long run.

Albion’s commitment to quality is evidenced by its BS EN ISO 9001:2000 certification and preferred supplier status with many customers. “We are equipped with automatic gauging equipment that checks every spring we manufacture,” notes Walters. “We also have some of the most advanced automated grinding machines on the market, as well as a dedicated cleanroom.”

The firm has particular expertise meeting the demands of medical device OEMs for tight-tolerance parts and the use of medical-grade materials. It can also provide specialist packaging. “We can design trays to facilitate pick-and-place robotic production methods,” adds Walters. These capabilities will be prominently featured at the company’s stand at MEDTEC.

The firm’s product range includes compression springs manufactured to customer specifications or from its inventory of more than 400 stock items, torsion and tension springs, wire shapes in sizes from 0.5 to 5 mm, pressed parts, and clips.