Design

Elixir Medical Corp. (Sunnyvale, CA) has received CE (Conformité Européenne) Mark approval for a coronary scaffold system designed to degrade in about one year, returning the patients' coronary vessels to a normal condition. The DESSolve scaffold combines a proprietary poly-L Lactide (PLLA) plastic with an anti-proliferative drug called Novolimus.

Until recently, vacuum maker Bissell viewed the costs of its outsourced plastic parts as largely inscrutable, simply accepting their price structure and design facets as delivered.

The drive to reduce medical costs in the United States is triggering more patient care in their homes, where costs are lower and there are reduced risks to acquire potentially deadly infections, such as MRSA and other penicillin-resistant bacteria.

While there were several papers presented on validation of mold-fill simulations, another type of validation was very intriguing: conformal cooling.

Editor's Note: PlasticsToday sent injection molding expert and 45-year veteran of the plastics industry, Bill Tobin to the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) ANTEC annual technical conference to get an expert's take on all things injection molding at the event. This is the second installment in a three-part series.

A new "smart catheter" senses the start of an infection and automatically releases an anti-bacterial substance. It is being tested at the University of Michigan in an effort to stop catheter-related blood and urinary tract infections.

Dipankar Koley, the principal researcher on the project, said the technology can be applied to catheters inserted into blood vessels and the urinary tract.

The shale gas boom in the United States is creating opportunity for an amorphous metal injection molding process that has struggled to find footing since its commercial launch in 2003.

Four of the six largest suppliers to the oil and gas industry are now testing prototypes of components that would be used in "shaped charges" used to complete wells. Shaped charges, also used in the military, are detonated at wellheads to perforate metal and concrete casings, permitting the influx of oil and gas.

Inland Label's MAXX Scoop IML label family beat out 231 entries from packaging suppliers and graphic design firms throughout North America to win the GOLD PAC Leadership Award at the Packaging Association of Canada's (PAC) biannual Awards Gala held in Mississauga, ON.

NatureWorks is targeting ABS replacement in PC/ABS in major durable applications including automotive interiors and business machines.

"The standard grade of ABS is a straight drop in for ABS in existing tooling," said Frank Diodato, business director, durables, at NatureWorks, in an interview. The cost is about $1/lb, comparable to ABS in most areas of the world.

Additive manufacturing has become a big part of Linear Mold & Engineering's  business as demand for end-use parts and conformal cooling lines for molds have grown. To help meet increased demand, Linear recently installed a new EOSINT M280 laser sintering system - Linear's fifth EOSINT machine - from EOS GmbH, and an SLM 280 Selective Laser Melting system from SLM Solutions GmbH, its first SLM machine.

Remember the blog I wrote almost exactly one year ago about a headline in Manufacturing & Technology News that caught my eye: "Government Is Pushing Full Speed Ahead On Additive Manufacturing." The editorial by Richard A.