SPOTLIGHT
Plastic components
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Precision plastics engineering is the specialty of a company that was founded in 1928. Capable of manufacturing parts for prototype- or production-batch sizes, the firm has developed a range of proprietary techniques for the heat treatment, precision machining, bonding, and polishing of plastics and other nonferrous materials. The manufacturer has almost three decades of experience developing diffusion-bonded medical manifolds. Suitable for handling fluids, gases, and reagents in point-of-care or laboratory equipment, the manifolds can be equipped with functional components such as pumps, valves, solenoids, heater modules, electrical circuitry, and filters. The company can produce microfluidic devices with tracks as small as 150 µm. Carville Ltd., Dorking, Surrey, UK
Metal injection moulding
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Suited for manufacturing small components in complex shapes that require intricate detail, close tolerances, and a fine surface finish, metal injection moulding can be used to produce a variety of medical and surgical components, hand tools, and precision equipment. The moulding technique can be used to create features such as fine teeth, serrations, lettering, as well as round, hexagonal, square, and elliptical-shaped holes. Internal or external threads can be incorporated at no extra moulding cost, although the tooling cost may increase when internal holes are required. Metal injection moulding offers fine surface finishes, close dimensional accuracy, and can produce tolerances of ±0.05 mm on a 10-mm scale.
Metal Injection Mouldings Ltd., Altrincham, Cheshire, UK
Contract services
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A company serving global medical device manufacturers offers a variety of services to help medical device companies shorten product development cycles, overcome capacity constraints, and gain first-to-market advantages. The company provides complex device assembly for finished goods as well as design and development services to facilitate the introduction of new products. Approximately 3500 people are employed in locations throughout the United States, Mexico, and China. The company’s facilities include Class 10,000 and Class 100,000 cleanrooms, in-house injection moulding with tonnage capacities ranging from 22 to 660 t, and a technology and development centre. Avail Medical Products Inc., Fort Worth, TX, USA
Laser processing
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A contract manufacturer specializes in laser processing for the medical device industry. With more than 17 years of experience, the company offers services such as laser cutting, drilling, and welding. Materials that can be processed include nitinol, stainless steel, titanium alloys, tantalum, niobium, ceramics, and plastics. The firm focuses on complex geometries and miniature workpieces with small cutting kerfs and strut dimensions in flat or tubular stock. Tolerances of 0.0005 mm are standard. The company is certified to ISO 13485. MeKo, Sarstedt, Germany
Precision components
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High-precision custom components made of materials such as biocompatible ceramics, ruby or sapphire, titanium, stainless steel, gold, platinum, tungsten carbide, fused quartz, and optical glass are available for medical device applications such as stents, catheters, pacemakers, and neurovalves. The manufacturer offers precision machining by means of brazing, laser welding, press-fitting, and crimping. The advanced biocompatible materials used by the company can provide an array of unique properties such as radiopacity, resistance to wear and corrosion, heating resistance, as well as electrical and thermal insulation. Rubis Précis, Charquemont, France
Connectors and cables
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A contract manufacturer that routinely designs, moulds, and assembles custom medical connectors and cables also provides standard products. The company has created cables for a range of medical applications including electroencephalography, electromyography, nerve-integrity monitoring, polysomnography, electromuscular stimulation, and electrocardiography. With more than 58 years of experience in the medical industry, the firm is certified to ISO 9001:2000 and registered with US FDA. Plastics One Inc., Roanoke, VA, USA
Wire and tubing manufacturing
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Contract manufacturing of straightened and cut fine wire and tubing components is available for devices used in medical procedures such as cardiology, neurology, electrophysiology, gastroenterology, peripheral intervention, vascular surgery, and urology. Examples of the company’s products include mandrels, core wires, coated hypotubes, trocars, stylets, biopsy needles, and catheters. The firm’s PTFE-coated mandrels are said to be up to 50% less expensive than those with standard spray coatings. The mandrels are flake resistant and free of perfluorooctanoic acid and chromic acid. According to the firm, the coatings used on the mandrels are also stronger, more consistent, and thinner than standard spray coatings. The mandrels are available in a variety of colours, alloys, and sizes. Wytech, Rahway, NJ, USA
Moulded ceramic parts
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A Swiss manufacturer can develop a variety of moulded ceramic parts. The century-old company has more than 35 years of experience in manufacturing advanced ceramics. Specializing in developing miniature precision parts made from high-purity alumina and other high-performance ceramics, the company produces medical device components such as custom blades, insulators for endoscopes, electrosurgery devices, ceramic feed throughs, and dental abutments. The firm is certified to ISO 9001:2000, ISO 14001:2004, and ISO 13485:2003. Ceramaret S.A., Bôle, Switzerland
