FORT WAYNE, Ind.—The pandemic has forced the acceleration of medical elastomer development, and all signs are that Trelleborg's Healthcare and Medical Rapid Development Center has been a success since opening earlier this year.
The center offers design, prototyping, development and serial production, using Class 7 cleanrooms and proper validation processes. Its facilities are ISO-certified and certified by the Food and Drug Administration and European Medical Device Regulation.
"Trelleborg created the Rapid Development Center in response to the needs of its health care and medical customers to accelerate time to market, reduce the production cost of parts already in market and improve the transition from design to serial production," said Chris Tellers, director of the center.
Tellers noted that the facility has built ten tools and shipped 1,905 parts—with some bucking supply line challenges and being delivered within four business days.
"We were able to achieve this because we are not limited by machine availability, and our processes are streamlined for speed to help our customers receive parts in hand quickly," Tellers said. "Looking to the future, we will continue to support our customers with their rapid development projects, review and invest in new technologies, and train our team to improve the diversity of our skills."
Trelleborg said it expects to hire more employees in the coming year as growth at the center continues.
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