Application of Metal Powder Injection Molding Technology MIM in Medical Device Components

 

Date：[2024/7/10]
 

1.The current development status and background of the medical industry
Medical devices are an important foundation for the construction of the medical and health system. The medical device industry has high strategic, driving and growth potential, and its strategic position has been widely valued by countries around the world. It has become an important symbol of a country's scientific and technological progress and national economic level, and has become one of the most active industries in world trade today. According to EvaluateMdTech's statistics, the global medical device market size reached $390.3 billion in 2015, an increase of $35 billion compared to 2011, with a compound growth rate of only 2.38% from 2011 to 2015; In 2015, the size of China's medical device market was 308 billion yuan, and the compound growth rate from 2011 to 2015 reached 20.31%, far exceeding the global growth rate. At the same time, the institution predicts that the global medical device market will grow to $477.5 billion in 2020, with a global compound growth rate of approximately 4.12% from 2015 to 2020, and is expected to continue to grow steadily.
In the field of medical devices, medical accessories produced by MIM technology have high precision and can meet the requirements of small size, high complexity, and high mechanical performance required by most precision medical devices. Especially in recent years, with the rapid development and growth of minimally invasive medicine, MIM produced accessories have also been widely used, such as surgical tool handles, scissors, tweezers, dental parts, ear parts, orthopedic joint parts, etc.
2.The Application of MIM Technology in Medical Devices
Powder injection molding is a branch of metallurgy and materials science, which mainly uses metal powder (including a small amount of non-metallic powder mixed in) as raw material, and uses the "forming+sintering" method to manufacture materials and products. It is a near net forming process that produces complex components at a lower cost. According to the classification of materials, powder injection molding can be divided into two categories: MIM (Metal Injection Molding) and CIM (Ceramic Injection Molding).
Hemostatic forceps: changed the surgical procedures from "hard" to "soft";
Laparoscopy: has opened the surgical mode from "open abdominal surgery" to "minimally invasive small hole surgery";
At present, the fastest developing medical industry is minimally invasive surgery, in which many key components are made using MIM technology;
The key components of minimally invasive instruments have various geometric shapes and complex structures, which require high dimensional accuracy;
The materials used include stainless steel 316 and 17-4PH, titanium and nickel titanium alloys, F75, etc;
The current status of hard tissue replacement materials implanted in the human body includes artificial bone joints, bone trauma fixation systems, spinal orthopedic internal fixation systems, and dental implants.
According to statistics from the health department, there are nearly 300 million patients with missing teeth and edentulous teeth in China, and at least 26 million patients with economic conditions are willing to receive an implant for more than 2000 yuan. According to this calculation, dental implants can form a market of at least 53.1 billion yuan.
The porous implant prepared by co injection molding technology, degreasing and desalination, co sintering, has a double-layer structure,
The porous layer is uniformly wrapped around the dense core, with uniform pore size;
There are no obvious cracks at the junction of the porous layer and the dense core, and the two have good sintering compatibility with the dense new dental implant;
3.Summary
With the aging population structure in China and the deepening reform of national medical policies, the medical device industry has entered a period of rapid development.
It can be foreseen that the unique advantages of MIM products will continue to grow in the application scale of MIM metal injection in this field in the future!
Shenzhen Yujiaxin Technology Co., Ltd. adopts top-notch MIM metal powder injection molding technology to create high-precision and complex surgical forceps, ultrasonic knife heads, etc. Every detail showcases unique craftsmanship, safeguarding medical safety. Yujiaxin, make surgery more precise and life safer! The precise choice of surgical instruments!