Interview in 3printr.com

Netherland-based company Vosfox Medical is a contract manufacturer specialising in low-volume production of polymer-based medical devices and components. Their definition of low-volume is flexible, starting with 1, but production can go up to 10,000 pieces. The company supports clients in bringing their medical devices to market quickly and efficiently by managing the translation of laboratory sample preparation to clinical batch production, incorporating technologies such as 3D printing. In an interview with 3Druck.com, founder and CEO Sandra de Vos, shares her insights into manufacturing for the medical sector.

Vosfox Medical’s expertise lies in utilising various technologies such as 3D printing, table top injection moulding, assembly and packaging, and accommodating any custom technologies that its customers may have developed. As long as the project fits within its facilities, the company is equipped to handle it. Two clean rooms and ISO 13485 certification ensure high-quality standards. Their services include development (process, packaging, supply chain), validation (packaging, sterilisation, process, etc.) and regular production, providing customers with comprehensive support.

Additive manufacturing technologies utilised in their facility include Stereolithography (SLA), Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF), solvent-cast 3D printing, and bioprinting. These techniques enable the manufacturing of medical equipment consumables, implants, models, and surgical guides, among other items. Vosfox Medical also employs Fibre Tuff, a composite material with bone-like properties that enable drilling into the printed components and securing screws.

Interview with Sandra de Vos

In an Interview with 3Druck.com, founder and CEO Sandra de Vos explains why additive manufacturing is becoming increasingly crucial in the medical field and why the availability of raw materials plays a decisive role.

In your opinion, what significance does additive manufacturing have for the medical sector?

Additive manufacturing is one of many production technologies that is taking a growing important place in the medical sector. Low-cost production of devices or components, especially in lower volumes, helps innovations come to market. The lower cost of bringing a product to market makes more business cases profitable.

3D printing can also be used to produce more complex product designs. This results in less assembly and, therefore, lower cost and a lower chance of contamination during assembly.

Additive manufacturing has continuously developed in recent years. Which innovations or technological breakthroughs do you consider to be particularly important for the medical industry?

More and more medical-grade raw materials are available on the market. These can be powder for SLS printing (e.g., medical-grade titanium or nylon), medical-grade resins for SLA printing, or medical-grade PEEK filaments for high-temperature FDM printing. These materials allow the transformation of R&D prints into real products that can be and are used in the clinical setting.

The next breakthrough, I hope, will be the bioprinting of larger constructs than is currently possible with living cells.

First Corona and now high inflation pose major challenges for the entire industry. How do the multiple crises affect the additive manufacturing industry, in your opinion?

The additive manufacturing industry will have to endure the same crises as every other industry. I do not think these crises pose a higher threat to additive manufacturing than to other industries.

I even think that these crises are an opportunity for additive manufacturing for lower to middle-volume production batches. Higher prices for materials favour production methods with lower waste percentages. 3D printing can produce less waste than, for instance, injection moulding.

What impact do you think additive manufacturing will have on various industries and possibly society in the coming years?

3D printing does not solve all problems. It is just one of the production processes for devices and components. All processes have a rightful place in the market and a sweet spot concerning material, volume, design, and application. 3D printing has already found some sweets spots where it can compete with other production methods, but we are also still searching for new applications and sweet spots until we are mature.