Medical

With the introduction of DMLS to the medical industry, the manufacture of patient specific instrumentation and implants has become cost- and time- effective. The DMLS process enables surgical and medical devices to be manufactured directly from the CAD design, without having to endure the cost elements of conventional manufacturing techniques.

The reduction in leadtimes that this technology offers opens up new opportunities for custom devices to be designed and manufactured for trauma patients. Rather than using standard products, they can have the right tools and instruments to meet their specific requirements.

Also suitable for production, DMLS enables the manufacture of implants and instrumentation for clinical trials. Without the need for tooling and with reduced leadtimes, the designs can remain fluent, adapting to the surgeons and patients' requirements as they happen.

In addition to surgical applications, the DMLS process can be used in the development and manufacture of medical equipment, as it gives the flexibility to produce low volume parts at an affordable price. All material properties meet the chemical and mechanical specifications of standard cast parts, so CE marking can be obtained while large volume production methods and tooling are being developed.

Some suitable applications are:-

• Cranial maxillofacial implants
• Orthopaedic instruments and saw guides
• Arthroscopy and key hole instruments
• Custom devices
• Medical apparatus
• Analytical equipment
• Demonstrations and training

As more challenging and complex procedures are being carried out, the ability to inexpensively and efficiently produce customised devices and models is becoming increasingly attractive for many specialist areas within the medical sector.

Several materials are already available for the medical industry; Cobalt Chrome alloy (EOS CC MP1) and Stainless Steel 17-4 (EOS SS 17-4); and some will be available towards the end of 2007, such as pure Titanium (EOS TI), Ti6Al4V alloy (EOS Ti64) and Stainless Steel PH1 (EOS SS PH1).

Skull Plates (l)polished, (r) as sintered	DMLS teeth on SLS Jaw Bone
Knee implant in EOS CobaltChrome MP1 (Source: EOS)	Medical devices in EOS StainlessSteel 17-4 (Source: PEP / DePuy)

Components for a sawing guide for big toe joint in DirectMetal 20 (Built on an EOS M250Xtended) (Source: PEP/DePuy)