May 2000
MD&DI
Selected Contents

COVER STORY:
Designing for Software System Integration: Architecture Makes the Difference
by Jeffrey Schaffer

The correct choice of a software architecture and its supporting operating system facilitates development and clears a path to the marketplace.

SPECIAL SECTION:
Selecting the Proper Colorant for Thermoplastics
by Carl Bryce, Don Stengel, and Lori Tobin

Testing reveals which resins retain their physical properties when colored with zinc sulfide and titanium dioxide.

FLOW CONTROL:
Going with the Flow: Streamlining Design and Manufacturing through Computational Fluid Dynamics
by Keyvan Keyhani, Rupak Banerjee, and Shoreh Hajiloo

Computer simulations based on advanced mathematical models are helping product developers improve fluid-flow devices.

COMBINATION PRODUCTS:
Combination Products Enhance Capabilities, Pose New Challenges
by William Loob

Devices that also include some functions of drugs or biologics are offering innovative treatment options, but can face hurdles in development.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT:
Marketing versus R&D: Spanning the Divide
by Keith Schleiffer

Developing a successful device and marketing it at a favorable time requires a team effort.

SENSORS:
Sensor Advances Spur New Diagnostic, Therapeutic Tools
by Gregg Nighswonger

The market for sensing technology continues to grow at a rapid pace, stimulated by new materials, novel design and fabrication methods, and innovative thinking.

INSPECTION:
Increasing Product Yields with Automated Vision Systems
by E. J. Claude and R. M. Carritte

Developing an automated inspection process eliminates the excessive variability of manually inspected product samples.

FIRST PERSON:
Adding Value: Specialty Distribution Expands Options
by Mark Thill

Although market dynamics are changing substantially, the specialty distributor members of IMDA still play a valuable role for makers of innovative devices, says the group's communications director.

WASHINGTON WRAP-UP:
HIMA, FDA Converge on Third-Party Reviews
by James G. Dickinson

Also:

• Industry Respondents Say FDA Reviewers "Lack Expertise"
• Center Plans High-Tech Exchanges
• Consensus Standards: Normally, FDA Won't Look
• New FDA Ombudsman Is Activist

R&D HORIZONS:
Virtual Reality Moves into the Medical Mainstream
by Kassandra Kania

Though still largely investigational, computer simulations and augmented reality systems are poised to make a dramatic impact on medical treatment.

BOTTOM LINE:
Sticking Point: Sharps Makers, Users Feel Pinch of Needlestick Prevention Initiatives
by Scott H. Reisch and Edward C. Wilson, Jr.

A barrage of new and proposed laws and regulations at both the federal and state levels will increasingly complicate the development and marketing of sharps in the United States.

EDITOR'S PAGE:
Have Pacemaker, Will Travel
by John Katz

Moving certain product-support functions on-line disburdens physicians and benefits patients. Will it also provide device manufacturers with indirect but significant marketing benefits?