Company insight
have imagined without seeing it myself,” Vogel continues. “A completely new design and product evolved out of this experience. We patented this tipless retrieval device with guidewire and now we’re producing more than 100,000 units per year.”
infrastructure that is being stretched by a growing number of patients with long- term health needs.
Likewise, the Covid-19 pandemic opened the door for “smart” medicine. We were all forced into telehealth, which made the use of at-home smart health
“What we
offer...is ‘outside the box’ thinking to develop the automated processes that are needed to manufacture small-scale components repeatedly, [and]
how...to implement more capabilities out of the same final product dimensions.”
Dr Cacie McDorman
A joint view on life-changing innovations
Endosmart is a partner from start to finish, providing everything that is needed from the design stage through to final production – a true one-stop shop. “Over the past five to seven years, we have seen a need from our customers that we build up the complete technical file, which they again need for the registration of the product,” Vogel explains. According to Vogel: “We have increased the capabilities that our customers are requiring with our knowledge in nitinol processing. It’s not easy to join nitinol material to other components such as stainless steel or integrate it into complex instruments and make a finished implant. We can step in during the development, designing and concept phase and, in partnership with our customers, support them to a fast ramp up to produce in high numbers.”
Like Alleima, it is the expertise that Endosmart brings to the table that makes the company an ideal partner for medical device OEMs. Alleima and Endosmart share the goal of improving the quality of life for patients.
Smaller and smarter medical devices
A notable trend in the medical device market is miniaturisation. Smaller medical devices make for less invasive procedural techniques, less trauma during surgeries, and shorter recovery times. Not only does this help patients return to their normal lives much sooner, but it takes considerable strain off healthcare
devices acceptable. While devices such as continuous glucose monitors first allowed patients to take charge of their own health, there is a trend in other medical devices to provide patients with the same level of control. The medical device of the future is wireless and app based. The miniaturisation of medical devices and making them “smart” requires ultra- fine wire components. Achieving this demands precision cutting and wire grinding capabilities beyond which many medical device manufacturers have in-house.
Developing barely visible products with more capabilities
Dr Cacie McDorman, engineering manager at Alleima, is leading a team of engineers at the Palm Coast facility. “What we offer our customers is ‘outside the box’ thinking to develop the automated processes that are needed to manufacture small-scale components repeatedly, but also how to make it possible to implement more capabilities out of the same final product dimensions. These products are as small as roughly one-tenth of a milligram in weight and barely visible,” says McDorman. As described above, Alleima acquired the expertise in processing nitinol for small components by acquiring the German based Endosmart at the end of November 2022. The engineers are excited about how the company’s ability to make ultra-fine wire and wire-components used for sensing and transmitting signals inside and outside the human body can be combined with nitinol’s smart and flexible features. Alleima is an expert in materials development and has
Medical Device Developments /
www.nsmedicaldevices.com
The first deflectable chip on the tip of an endoscope gave surgeons a completely new vision.
over 160 years of experience in developing the products of the future and are now leading the way in medical wire-based components and nitinol instrument innovation together with their new colleagues in Germany. The merger of the two companies also expands Alleima’s capabilities in Europe, and it provides a footprint in the US for advanced nitinol instruments, as well as a more secure value chain for Alleima’s customers. For more information visit the company’s website. ●
www.alleima.com/exera 87
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