Due to its high-performing properties polyetheretherketone thermoplastic polymer is being used more and more frequently in many products.

PEEK can replace fluoropolymers in cryogenic applications. Advanced Engineering Valves uses PEEK from Victrex for sealings in ball valves

Polyetheretherketone (PEEK)

Elektronik-Fertigung

Elektronik

Polyetherketon

Kunststoff Werkstoffe

Thermoplaste

Mikroelektronik

Kunststoff

Bauwesen

Baustoffe

Medizintechnik

Hochleistungskunststoffe

Medizinprodukte

Delivering Efficiency Even in  Harsh Environments

Styrenics can be polymerized using different technologies and it can be modified with a range of copolymers. The resulting plastics offer a wide range of properties allowing to customize them for different applications. Because of this range of properties they are suitable for many industries. Strong demand is for example driven by the automotive industry, healthcare and the packaging industry.

Styrene copolymers are frequently used in the exterior of vehicles. The Chinese manufacturer Lixiang, for example, uses an ASA for the radiator grill of its electric vehicles

Styrenic Polymers

Verpackungsmaterial

Logistik

Automotive

Polystyrol

Technische Kunststoffe

Styrol-Copolymerisate

Diverse Shapes and Applications

Lightweight construction, functionality and design are characteristic of material development in all areas of application for PC compounds, composites and films. The range of materials has enormous opportunities when it comes to the mobility of the future, lightweight structural construction with continuous fiber-reinforced composites, 5G technology and medical technology.

In electric vehicles, the original function of the radiator grille, namely to supply air to the engine, is no longer needed. It can therefore be used entirely as a design element, for example by integrating luminous logos and fade-out effects

Polycarbonate (PC)

Recycling

Umweltmanagement

Kunststoff-Recycling

Kunststoffverarbeitung: Verfahren

Kunststoff-Aufbereitung

Polycarbonat

Present in a Multitude of Trends

In the production of plastic parts for the medical and pharmaceutical industry, the requirements for cleanroom environments are becoming increasingly stringent. In this area, not only the demand for all-electric injection molding machines is increasing. There is also an increasing use of electric drives for the implementation of mold movements, which meet the high requirements for cleanliness and reliability.

Fig. 1. Solutions for electrical mold movements, for example a 72+72 cavity stack mold for the closing cone production

Electrical Drives in Injection Molds

Elektrische Antriebe

Antriebe

Spritzgießen

Spritzgießwerkzeuge

Kunststoffverarbeitung: Maschinen und Komponenten

Werkzeuge für die Kunststoffverarbeitung

Mess- / Regel- und Prozessleittechnik

Prozessautomation

Mess-, Steuer- und Regelgeräte

Qualitätssicherung

Qualitätssicherung Kunststoff

Reinraumsysteme / -technik

Mold Technology

Arburg Plastic Freeforming is predestined for the additive manufacturing of medtech components. The associated Freeformer-type additive manufacturing systems process the same plastic pellets that are used in injection molding. That makes the open systems very economical to use.

In the AKF process, resorbable original materials such a plate-implants similar to bone, can be manufactured. They are gradually replaced by endogenous tissue

Medical Product Manufacturers Are Processing Original Materials Using the Freeformer

Anlagen Additive Fertigung / 3D-Druck, andere

Anlagen für die Additive Fertigung

Biokunststoffe

Additive Fertigung

Werkstoffe für additive Verfahren

Andere Werkstoffe

Arburg Kunststoff Freiformen

Verfahren für die additive Fertigung

Freiraumverfahren

New Possibilities for Use  in the Human Body

Housings not only protect the inner workings of medical equipment, but also protect patients from electric shocks, for example. This function is very important for the increasingly widespread medical wearables, which are often in constant contact with the patient. When designing such devices, it is therefore important to select the appropriate housing material.

Housings play an important role in medical wearables. They protect their inner workings, but at the same time protect the users of the devices

Materials for Medical Wearable Housings

Gehäuse aus Kunststoff

Elektromechanik

Kühlkörper

Protection and Attractive Design

A Polish pharmaceutical company is developing inhalation therapy for the treatment of lung disease and the appropriate drug delivery drug. The inhaler has a complex interior and consists of 14 components. In order to be able to produce these with the required precision, Celon Pharma has formed a partnership with the mold making company Glittenberg and its hot runner sister Witosa.

For its complex functional mechanism, the inhaler requires 14 components

Glittenberg Supplies Tools for Vital Medical Devices to Celon Pharma

Heißkanalsysteme

Komponenten für die Kunststoffverarbeitung

Plastic in the Service of Medicine

Italy‘s RadiciGroup is investing EUR 15 million in a new plant for the production of meltblown nonwovens. The Group‘s strategic decision is intended to make the Italian supply chain for the base material for protective masks more autonomous.

16:9

Kunststoffverarbeitung allgemein

Kunststoffverarbeitung

Gewebe, technisch

Halbzeuge und Zwischenprodukte

Kunststoff-Halbzeuge

Unternehmen

kunststoffe.de

Invest in a New Production Line for Meltblown Nonwoven

Thermoplastic compounds with integrated electrical conductivity offer a potential solution to resolve EMI, EMS and electrostatic discharge challenges. These thermoplastic materials can deliver the appropriate level of electromagnetic shielding for electronics, while providing freedom to design complex geometries and opportunities to streamline processing by avoiding secondary operations.

SEM analysis illustrates inferior dispersal (above) and good dispersion (bottom) of conductive fibers in molded polycarbonate parts. The distribution can be optimized by appropriate processing parameters and injection molding machines (PC resin)

Ensure the Electromagnetic Compatibility of Wireless Devices with Special Plastics

Compound

Kunststoff-Erzeugung

Well Protected against  Electromagnetic Interference

Pipette tips feature a challenging wall thickness/length ratio, an inner geometry that is key for analysis results, and a tip opening just a few tenths of a millimeter wide. They have been in extremely high demand during the coronavirus pandemic, which is why the mold construction and hot runner specialist Männer has developed a mold with an innovative cluster concept.

At the Männer test center in Bahlingen, Germany: an injection mold for manufacturing pipette tips, shown here in operation. Automation of the system is currently being set up

Pipette Tips: Männer Presents a Mold with Replaceable Clusters

Maintenance During (Nearly)  Uninterrupted Production

Space-saving machine concepts for demanding production environments are booming. A real-life example of a slit micro-membrane for pharmaceutical glass vials shows how intelligent machine functions make an important contribution to supporting machine operators and continuous documentation of the production process.

Injection molding and slitting of an LSR membrane for a glass-vial closure for pharmaceutical products make high demands on precision

KraussMaffei Delivers a Customized Solution for LSR Processing

Automatisierungszellen

Automatisierungstechnik

Mikrospritzgießen

Silikonkautschuk

Kautschuk / Elastomere

Transparency in Production

RKT has been manufacturing plastic products for medical and industrial technology for 45 years. Discs for the rapid analysis of multi-resistant hospital germs are a lighthouse project within the sophisticated product portfolio.

 A six-axis robot picks the molded parts out of the mold under an inert gas atmosphere and conveys them into the cleanroom for further processing and packaging

High-Tech Production of Life-Saving Disks for Fast Analysis of Dangerous Germs

An All-Round Winner

NTU Singapore scientists develop washable nanotech antimicrobial masks that filter 99.9 % of bacteria, viruses, and haze particles.

The N95 prototype mask made with the dielectric fabric, with bottles of copper nanoparticles of various colors in the background

Technik Trend

kunststoffe-international.com

Polypropylen

 Protection against Viruses and Bacteria

Pharmaceutical crimp caps generally consist of a thin aluminum sheet and a plastic component, and are used to seal medical vials, for example for vaccines. Through a combined deep-drawing and backmolding process with previous inline laser treatment of the thin aluminum sheet, the process can be significantly shortened. The media-proof joining together of the two materials is carried out through a mechanically interlocking connection.

A crimp cap for injection vials is manufactured in a two-step process.

Combined Deep-Drawing and Backmolding Process with Mechanically Interlocking Joint

Hybridtechnik

Aluminiumlegierungen

Metall Werkstoffe

NE-Metalle

Laserbearbeitungen

Oberflächentechnik

Tiefziehen

Verfahren für die spanlose Fertigung

Spritzgieß-Sonderverfahren

Simulation Stanzen / Umformen

Software

Simulation

Laserstrukturieren

Hybrid-Spritzgießen (Metall / Kunststoff)

Process Chain for the Production of Hybrid Medical Products

How do you bring 65 injection molding machines and various assembly lines – most of the manufacturing cells in the cleanroom – as well as, soon, a large number of ancillary equipment under one digital roof? A field report.

The Arburg host computer system ALS is the link between the shop floor and ERP system and connects order management with process and quality monitoring.

The Arburg Host Computer System as a Basis of Higher Productivity and Product Quality

Steuerungen (Hardware und Software)

Industrie 4.0 für die Qualitätssicherung

Industrie 4.0

Doriat, Clemens, Dr.

Condition Monitoring / Prozessüberwachung

Instandhaltung

Kennzahlen, Q-Leitstand, Q-Monitor

Rückverfolgbarkeit, Traceability

Qualitätsmanagement

Energieeffizienz

Industrie 4.0 für die Kunststoffverarbeitung

Montagelinien

Montagetechnik

Montage

Case Files for Patient Safety

How is a medical device actually made? Six companies will demonstrate a complete production process at the special area, which is professionally supported by the VDMA.

„The production line highlights the interconnection within production and the importance of each individual step in the entire value chain,“ explains Christopher Boss, Executive Director of MedtecLIVE. The manufacturers are not yet revealing what exactly will be produced. Visitors can find out in hourly guided tours during the duration of the medical technology exhibition. However, a look at the companies involved already reveals some details.

The company Forécreu provides the metallic base material for the production line, which is used as the basis for manufacturing. Specifically, it is a cannulated bar material in stainless steel. From this, a workpiece is produced on the Cincom L320–2M12B5 sliding headstock automatic lathe from Citizen Machinery Europe – which can also produce complex parts. The next step is demonstrated by the Gindele company, which has developed an injection mold that overmolds the metal insert with a medical plastic on an Arburg machine. A manual ultrasonic cleaning and passivation system with a final rinsing cascade and hot air dryer from KKS Ultraschall is then used for precleaning.

To ensure that the „medical product“ is traceable, Foba Laser Marking + Engraving demonstrates process-safe UDI laser marking on the production line with the help of the Mosaic camera system, which enables marking without recording. The final cleaning of the component is then again carried out by the KKS Ultraschall system, which is specially designed for cleaning and passivating laser-marked parts. Finally, Medipack packs the component in a prefabricated blister and seals it.

Production will take place on all three days of the exhibition, and a guided tour of the production line will be offered every full hour. MedtecLIVE with T4M will take place from 23 to 25 May 2023 in Nuremberg, Germany. <a href="https://www.medteclive.com/en" target="_blank">www.medteclive.com</a>

How raw material becomes a medical product will be shown at MedtecLIVE with T4M from 23 to 25 May 2023 in Nuremberg.

2023-05-16 Medtec Produktionsstraße live

issue 04/2023

issue 03/2023

issue 02/2023

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