From high-precision component manufacturers to medical providers, contributors all along the health system supply chain have had to swiftly adopt new processes with flexibility and resiliency in order to battle the ongoing COVID-19 health crisis. Medical device manufacturers, in particular, are experiencing immense disruption as production lines are altered to fulfill the need for assorted diagnostics, testing supplies, and personal protective equipment (PPE) in higher demand than ever.    

While challenging, the current landscape has transformed the way device makers bring cutting-edge designs and solutions to healthcare workers and is forming new and improved processes for the device-to-market journey. Amongst a competitive landscape, the manufacturers gaining a significant advantage are the ones who have recalibrated the value chain by integrating advanced polymer engineered components into the product design process’s initial stages to eliminate high-costs and better support product demand through faster speeds-to-market.

I recently spoke with Ben Masnado, sales manager at Trelleborg Healthcare & Medical – a world leader in engineering polymer solutions that seal, damp, and protect critical applications in demanding environments that will be exhibiting at MD&M BIOMEDigital – about the importance of the upcoming event and what attendees can look forward to learning at the company’s virtual booth.

Trelleborg Healthcare & Medical delivers a robust suite of solutions from high-quality, high-precision medical components and devices derived from innovative polymer technology to pioneering the technology behind hospital mattress fabric that protects patients.

Hayley Haggarty: Can you speak to your solutions and what makes your company stand out in the market? 

Ben Masnado: At Trelleborg Healthcare & Medical, we form lasting partnerships with customers to help them negotiate the development process from concept to commercialization. Working alongside them, we help to design, develop, manufacture and bring to market innovative engineered solutions for demanding medical device, biotech, and pharmaceutical applications.

Where Trelleborg Healthcare & Medical truly stands out is in our ability to partner with customers and solve complex challenges. Our unique combination of capabilities, including molding, extrusion, drug combination devices, and more, enables Trelleborg to come to the table with creative solutions to our customers’ design and manufacturing challenges. Our 30+ year track record of offering superior support, reliable supply, and world-class quality gives customers the confidence to rely on us for ongoing support and supply once a device is commercialized.

Hayley Haggarty: The healthcare field faces increasing pressure to advance medical devices to keep up with population growth and aging communities. How is Trelleborg helping medical device manufacturers find solutions to these issues?    

Ben Masnado: Our global footprint enables us to build in additional manufacturing capabilities to address demand changes quickly. This flexibility is something that’s also built into the design of our sites. Flexible floor plans enable us quickly to adapt to the population’s changing needs, and therefore, our customers. Many global supply chains are stressed right now. Trelleborg’s scale, global reach, approach to planning, and transparent communication help us manage these situations to minimize our customers’ impact.

Trelleborg Healthcare & Medical also supports customers with additional value-added services, such as sub-assembly and complete device assembly. Assuming responsibility for these processes, we enable our customers to focus on advancing their businesses and products.

Trelleborg Healthcare & Medical is also growing with market trends. Devices are becoming smaller and smarter, which drives new needs from our customers. Manufacturing at micro-dimensions, integrating sensors into devices, and other developing technologies all require a strong understanding of polymer technologies, manufacturing capabilities, and, most of all, a collaborative approach with customers.

Hayley Haggarty: As an exhibitor at MD&M BIOMEDigital, what innovative solutions can attendees look forward to learning about at your booth? 

Ben Masnado: Trelleborg Healthcare & Medical will exhibit several exciting solutions at the BIOMEDigital Conference. We’re looking forward to showcasing our:

Hayley Haggarty: What excites you most about connecting with your community at the upcoming virtual event? 

Ben Masnado: While the world changed in many ways in 2020 with the global COVID-19 pandemic, some things relative to our industry did not change: the medical device world continued to bring new innovative solutions to market, new technologies continued to develop, and patient outcomes continued to improve through the work that the MedTech industry does day in and day out. What excites Trelleborg Healthcare & Medical about the virtual event is the ability to have conversations with current and future customers about how, together, we can continue to drive the market forward, integrate new technologies, and improve patients’ lives.

Hayley Haggarty: How does Trelleborg plan to leverage the industry-leading virtual event to further meet the growing demands of the medical and healthcare markets?

Ben Masnado: Industry events, whether in-person or virtual, are all about connections and conversations. It is a forum to learn from each other, partner, and brainstorm on projects. Trelleborg Healthcare & Medical sees events like this as an opportunity to strengthen partnerships with current and future customers to bring new solutions to market.

More than ever, the healthcare system is experiencing a critical need for innovation and collaboration during the device assembly process. In response, Informa Markets – Engineering, the organizers of the industry-leading Medical Design & Manufacturing (MD&M) and BIOMEDevice events and publisher of Design News, will present MD&M BIOMEDigital, a new virtual conference and exhibition for medical device engineers and manufacturers driving progress and innovation in the design stage of medtech and biotechnology product development.

Taking place April 6 and 7, the virtual event will provide a unique meeting opportunity for the global community featuring a virtual expo floor with more than 100 companies driving frontline product innovation. The conference will include a robust schedule offering technical sessions curated around today’s challenges, from engineering durable and elastic medical device components to sensor miniaturization.  

Register here and access exhibitor profiles, exclusive networking opportunities, and technical sessions that matter to you.

To schedule a meeting with Trelleborg at MD&M BIOMEDigital, please register for the event and reach out to Ben Masnado, sales manager, Trelleborg Healthcare & Medical at [email protected].