How to face challenges of designing components
Maximilian Schober, VP sales Germany & marketing, Polyrack Tech-Group, shares how to face the challenges of designing components.
In the global medical technology industry, patients worldwide rely on the functionality of medical technology components and systems. Companies in this sector are therefore faced with enormous challenges, as their products must not only be durable, but also provide lasting, reliable performance.
In this context, system and enclosure solutions play a central role, especially those that are characterised by their robustness, hygiene, electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) and long-term availability.
In the field of medical technology components, savvy suppliers with a broad performance spectrum benefit considerably, as they can meet the requirements of a long service life and maximum reliability, while at the same time offering customised adaptation options.
Polyrack’s portfolio
Polyrack's industrial enclosure series, the FrameTEC series for 19-inch racks, recently won the iF Design Award in the "Product" discipline within the "Industry/Tools" category, due to its flexibility in design and dimensions.
The design is modern and simple, and yet it convinces with functionality. Due to its mechanical and cosmetic customisation options, a FrameTEC enclosure opens up a wide range of applications in the field of medical technology.
Polyrack also has the EmbedTEC SFF (Small Form Factor) enclosures with a customised development platform. These enclosures have been developed as a flexible platform for various application areas, including powerful embedded computer systems and HMI solutions with compact integrated computers and displays. The special feature of these enclosures is the "Customise-Only" strategy, where customers can assemble their desired enclosures based on individual changeable components. The aim was to ensure a high degree of customisability with a low number of basic components to make specific adaptations as simple as possible. The basis of the EmbedTEC enclosures consists of a base plate, four design corner elements and a bonnet, with all elements available in different sizes.
Flexibility and trust
Early communication of customer requirements is crucial to developing the optimal solution. This enables consideration of economic aspects such as distribution and service costs as well as the targeted unit price. Various internal technologies allow personalisation in terms of appearance, colouring and printing to implement the customer's corporate design. Innovative technologies enable the design of customised products from standard components that ideally meet the requirements.
Can second source become first choice?
In the medical technology industry, innovation management plays a central role, and tight risk management is crucial. One of the challenging tasks is to ensure that alternative, already pre-certified components are also always available in order to prevent possible supply bottlenecks. In this context, the selection of single source suppliers gains particular importance. This strategy aims to ensure the highest quality and reliability of components and thus protect the heart of innovative medical devices.
In many cases, the decision for a second source represents a complex compromise. It requires careful qualification and testing to ensure that the final product offers the required quality and reliability. The costs associated with this decision, particularly for second source qualification, can be significant and acceptance of such changes can be a major hurdle in the industry. Polyrack has many years of experience and technological capabilities in the field of prototyping and second source planning, which as a complete package offer customers maximum relief and the highest level of planning security.