The medical technology sector is growing like no other at present and represents an engine for innovation, growth and employment.
In order to identify the associated opportunities and address them, especially on the technical and personnel side, DMG MORI established Medical Excellence at an early stage. The know-how bundled in Medical Excellence Centers now allows an industry-focused approach, taking into account the high level of regulation and the extensive specific standards and regulations of the industry.
Background:
The medical industry in Germany currently has an export ratio of 66% and most recently generated sales of €46 billion.* As before, the expected innovation drivers are potential market novelties, with the manufacture of counterfeit products also coming more and more into focus.
* US market = $199.80 billion in 2023
https://www.statista.com/outlook/hmo/medical-technology/worldwide
What does Medical Excellence encompass?
DMG MORI offers a wide range of machine solutions for high-quality turning and milling as well as additive manufacturing in the medical device market via the NTX and DMP series, DMU machines and LASERTEC Sprint technology.
However, Medical Excellence is also synonymous with the goal of transitioning the manufacture of medical products away from sequential operations to a holistic machining strategy. Thus machining centers have been created on which all 6 sides of complex implants can be completely and continuously machined. Similarly, DMG MORI's automatic lathes enable conventional and sliding-head turning on one machine.
Whether large hip joints, small clamps for osteosynthesis or instruments are involved,the interdisciplinary approach within the Medical Excellence Centers results in technical solutions that deliver measurably good results in terms of quality and quantity.
A recurring theme for medical device manufacturers is how to reduce the unit cost of medical devices, machines and systems.
How does medical excellence show?
Just one factor among many, but a crucial one for medical device manufacturers, is machine size and footprint. Medical device manufacturers not only expect high technology density in a compact area, but often need to integrate equipment into existing production environments. Therefore the trend is moving away from large machines and machining centers with many axes or small systems with fewer axes towards concepts that combine a lot of technology in a minimum of space. The best example: the NTX 500, which DMG MORI designed and built especially for spinal implant production.
Another topic within Medical Excellence: the materials used. They require background knowledge and processing expertise in equal measure, because in the strictly regulated environment of medical device manufacturing, approval also depends on the material and its biocompatibility.
Medical Excellence represents this know-how. A perfect example is nickel-titanium alloy. When machined, it shows a pronounced tendency to adhesion, work hardening and high ductility, so the ability to chip-break is reduced. This leads to burr formation, which must be taken into account in the process and thus in the design of a machine and in the choice of tools.
Medical Excellence at DMG MORI deliberately takes a holistic approach and accompanies customers from the initial idea for a new medical product through to the commissioning of a machine and into production. DMG MORI offers comprehensive consulting services for greenfield and brownfield projects.
We will shortly be presenting here the most important standards and regulations for the manufacture of medical devices.