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INDUSTRY NEWS

The Merck Serono Easypod electronic growth-hormone injector won the iF International Forum Design Award for product design.

PDD Ltd., a London-based production consultancy, and composite moulding firm Icotec AG (Altstätten, Switzerland) are both the recipients of recent design awards. The Merck Serono Easypod, an electronic growth-hormone injection device developed by PDD, received the 2008 iF International Forum Design Award in the product design category. Designed to be easy to use, the Easypod also reduces the perception of pain during injection, ensures reliability and safety in use and storage, and meets medication compliance. Other product features include adjustable injection depth and speed, dose volume memory, split-dose management options, and automatic safe needle loading and detachment.

“PDD designers and engineers worked closely with our human sciences team to understand the relationship between people, products, and the environments of use and then translate the user insights into clear cues for ongoing design development,” explains Alun Wilcox, the company’s medical director.

Icotec was given the Materialica Design Award in the surfaces category in Munich in October 2007 for composite implants made of carbon-fibre-reinforced PEEK. It was the third time in a row that the Swiss company has received the award.

Carbon-fibre-reinforced PEEK is a composite material mainly used in aeronautical, aerospace, and other applications ranging from golf clubs to motor bikes. By coating the material with titanium, Icotec has opened the door for new medical applications of the material. “The possibility of partial or full coating of our composite implants is for us a logical development to establish Icotec implants in modern medicine,” says Roger Stadler, managing director of Icotec. When uncoated, the material can be used for short-term implants. Bone adhesion can be promoted by coating the material. “A rough surface coating promotes strong bone attachment on the implant,” Stadler explains. “By using a partial coating, we can control the strength of the bone adhesion to meet the application’s needs.”

For more information on the Easypod, contact PDD Ltd., 85–87 Richford St., London W6 7HJ; phone: +44 20 8735 1111; fax: +44 20 8735 1133; e-mail: contact@pdd.co.uk; Internet: www.pdd.co.uk. To learn more about implants made of carbon-fibre reinforced PEEK, contact Icotec AG, Industriestr. 12, 9450 Altstätten, Switzerland; phone: +41 71 757 0020; Internet: www.icotec.biz.