Teknor Apex unveils polymer-neutral strategy for medical market
Teknor Apex has restructured its product portfolio to offer device designers and manufacturers multiple raw material options - it is calling this a polymer neutral medical marketing strategy and it will be unveiled at Medtec China in September.
“In light of recent regulatory pressures, medical device manufacturers are seeking the path of least resistance in selecting plastic raw materials without sacrificing performance and without straying far from historical economics,” said Peter Galland, medical industry manager for the vinyl dvision of Teknor Apex. “Teknor Apex has addressed these market needs by developing a complete and broad-based array of solutions that includes a very diverse portfolio of PVC options and a fast-growing family of TPE alternatives to PVC.”
With over 40 years experience as a supplier to medical manufacturers, the company’s medical product offerings include compounds that meet global and regional regulatory, industry and customer specifications, can be produced in plants around the world and provide identical performance and code compliance no matter where in the world they are used.
Teknor Apex’s flexible vinyl moulding and extrusion compounds is comprised of numerous gamma-stable, non-DEHP, and non-phthalate options. Clear, gamma-stable Apex rigid compounds are available for tubing connectors, luer locks, valves, and other medical components. Apex rigid moulding compounds also include gamma-stable formulations. Vital-Line medical-grade PVC compounds, originally developed by the Asia Pacific technical team, are available throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Flexalloy ultra high molecular weight PVC elastomers provide superior toughness and stability at temperature extremes.
The company also offers thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs). The Medalist product line includes a range of compounds, including styrenics (TPE-S), thermoplastic vulcanizates (TPE-V), olefinics (TPE-O) and other specialty alloys, available from 25 Shore OO to 85 Shore D. Medalist medical elastomers can be processed on conventional injection moulding and extrusion equipment, while certain grades are formulated to bond to engineering resins via two-shot overmoulding or coextrusion.
“Unlike traditional suppliers of medical compounds that focus on a single chemistry and push that product into the marketplace, Teknor Apex uses a novel ‘polymer-neutral’ approach, providing the specific compound that is precisely the best one for the target application in the respective global region,” said Elliott Pritikin, senior marketing manager for the Asia Pacific region. “The breadth of our technology portfolio also enables customers to purchase multiple compounds from Teknor Apex, obtaining the logistical advantages of single-sourcing as well as access to our company’s decades of experience working with customers in medical applications.”