Medical devices, instruments and surgical implants must function flawlessly within a life or death context. Every component of these products has to be manufactured to a microscopic level of precision and consistency. There is no metal finishing process that can achieve better results than electropolishing.
Small microburrs, fissures, cracks, and other defects left behind by machining on the surface of metal parts create an environment susceptible to bacterial and viral growth.
Electropolishing's ability to remove a microscopically precise surface layer with absolute consistency leaves critical metal parts with an ultraclean and ultrasmooth surface that inhibits the growth of pathogens and makes reusable devices easier to clean, without burrs, microcracks and other surface imperfections that can trap liquids and debris and give harmful bacteria a place to hide.
In fact, electropolishing is so effective at optimizing the surface of medical devices and parts that we are often consulted for help in the prototyping phase to ensure that features are designed in ways that make electropolishing even more effective and avoid common design flaws.
Download our technical guide and discover how electropolishing can enhance corrosion resistence and improve microfinish in medical device industry applications, including implants, cutting instruments, drills, blades, surgical instruments, and disposable devices.
Whether you are an original equipment manufacturer (OEM), a part manufacturer or a metal working shop looking to solve these common surface problems, it's critical to find a solution to adequately address these issues in a cost-effective method.
Small microburrs, fissures, cracks, and other defects left behind by machining on the surface of metal parts create an environment susceptible to bacterial and viral growth. Without a defect-free, ultraclean finish, metal instruments, medical implants, and other devices pose a risk to patient health and safety.
How Passivation Improves Metal Parts for Medical Device ManufacturingRead Post »
Vital Medical Device Electropolishing During COVID-19Read Post »
Automation in a Time of Expedited NeedsRead Post »
Electropolishing for Safer, More Cleanable Metal PartsRead Post »
Very small parts may be both complex and fragile. Ensuring that they can be electropolished safely and with consistent results requires carefully handling and custom racking. Some parts are so small that they must be racked using tweezers.
Medical parts including cannula parts, hypodermic needles, bone screws and tiny orthodontic components are among the smallest parts electropolished. Other small parts include fasteners: small screws, bolts, nuts, rivets and washers.
At Able Electropolishing we routinely electropolish medical implants as small as .125” long.
The ability to create custom racking is critical for effective electropolishing for small, complex parts. Robotic automation also ensures that tiny parts are electropolished with a microscopically precise amount of material removal. In-house testing and analysis provide visibility into the surface structure and defects of very small parts.