Company insight
Thermoplastic material solutions for life science
Westlake Plastics’ Life Sciences Division offers an extensive range of semi-finished high-performance thermoplastic products, backed by over 70 years of extrusion, compression moulding and application development expertise.
F
ounded in 1951, Westlake Plastics has developed a wealth of expertise related to extrusion and compression moulding processes, delivering semi- finished thermoplastic product solutions to customers across multiple industries. In the 1980s, Westlake Plastics paved the way for orthopaedic joint replacement implant sizing trials by becoming the first company to offer coloured medical grade polymers to the orthopaedic industry. Today, it is commonplace for sizing trial devices to be colour coded based upon size to allow for ease of use when sizing an implant device to a patient.
including polyetherimide (PEI), polyphenylsulfone and polyether ether ketone (PEEK). Additionally, for permanent implant applications, Westlake offers implantable ultra- high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE). As a leading supplier to the medical device market, Westlake has continued to innovate and expand manufacturing capacity and product offerings through capital investments, and through
“Westlake Plastics has been a leading producer of semi-finished thermoplastic products, including: extruded film, rod, sheet and tubing, ram extruded rod and compression moulded sheet.”
collaborative partnerships with resin producers and compounders. One recent development that highlights this has been the introduction of Amidelux, a transparent polyamide 12-sheet product that is well suited for applications where resistance to hospital disinfectants and cleaners is critical.
Joint replacement sizing trials machined from Westlake Plastics materials.
Product capabilities Since its inception, Westlake Plastics has been a leading producer of semi-finished thermoplastic products, including: extruded film, rod, sheet and tubing, ram extruded rod and compression moulded sheet. Westlake processes a range of engineering and high-performance thermoplastic materials for diagnostic applications and short duration contact (<24 hr) medical devices, ranging from polypropylene (PP), polyethylenes (PE) and polystyrenes (PS, HIPS), to high performance materials
Propylux HS comes in a variety of colours facilitating greater product customisation.
Certifications and lot traceability Westlake Plastics provides certificates of manufacturing conformance (COMC) with all products sold. All products are serialised and lot traceable. Each production order is lot- controlled meaning it is made with a single lot of 100% virgin resin (no regrind). All production process details are monitored throughout the run and are also lot traceable.
Markets and applications Geographic markets that served include North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific. Life Science application areas include medical instruments for orthopaedic and minimally invasive surgical devices, cardiovascular, diagnostics and imaging and the biopharmaceutical process equipment market.
Finding the optimal solution Westlake Plastics takes a collaborative approach to working with customers and brings to the table an outstanding knowledge of thermoplastic materials, processes and design. Additionally, Westlake’s partnerships with resin producers and compounders allow for greater material customisation opportunities. This expertise and range of product customisation enables Westlake to provide its customers with application development support to find the optimal material solution for application. ●
Protective face shield thermoformed using Westlake’s Amidelux transparent PA12-sheet.
Medical Device Developments /
www.nsmedicaldevices.com
www.westlakeplastics.com 85
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