Medical Machining for Fixtures, Tooling, and Automation Equipment
Area Tool & Manufacturing has partnered with medical manufacturing customers for decades, helping them machine components for their most important production needs. Our team combines responsive communication with the machining experience needed to deliver reliable results for parts with tight tolerances and small features.
How Medical Manufacturers Partner With Area Tool
Medical manufacturing customers approach our shop with a variety of problems or challenges. But many projects begin in one of two ways that are particularly common:
R&D needs: Customers may identify a part that is causing an inefficiency in how their automation runs. To adjust the machine, the customer has to prototype and iterate a new design. In these cases, we can provide the fast prototyping and responsive iteration they need.
Part failures: In situations where a machine has gone down, the priority is getting production moving again as quickly as possible. They need a shop they can trust to move fast while communicating clearly.
Critical Features of Medical Machining
These two starting points can be quite different, but the machining challenges involved are similar. Medical manufacturing frequently involves tight tolerances, small features, complex radii, and finishes that must be carefully controlled.
A recent PEEK testing fixture is a good example. The part was complex, featuring smooth radii throughout the design. And after talking with the customer, we learned why those features were essential: The fixture would hold the customer’s end product during testing, and any sharp corner or rough surface could damage the product.
Our capabilities and expertise made this complex part straightforward, and we used our 5-axis machining capabilities to blend the radii smoothly and achieve the required surface finish.
A Range of Materials, From Metals to PEEK and Acrylic
Tough features aren’t the only challenge in medical machining. While we’re well versed in metals like aluminum, stainless steel, and titanium, in recent years, we’ve seen more requests involving materials like PEEK and acrylic.
For example, Area Tool recently machined clear acrylic parts where surface finish was especially important. The parts needed to remain clear so the customer could see the part features during use.
When initial tooling left marks that did not meet Area Tool’s standards, the team tested other options and selected tooling that produced a better finish. That continuous improvement is part of how we’re able to step up to the challenge of demanding medical manufacturing work.
The Right Machine Shop for Medical Manufacturing
There’s a reason so many medical customers keep coming back to us. Just recently, we were discussing the features and radii in a design with a customer’s engineer, and he said:
“This is just why I love working with you guys. You understand design, you understand what we’re trying to achieve, and you’re transparent in trying to help us get the best results and save money.”
Request a quote to work with a medical precision machining partner that understands the demands of medical manufacturing.
