Inspiring results

Orchid Orthopedic Solutions is headquartered in Holt, Mich. From the main company, a division called Orchid Design does contract product development for orthopedic medical devices from two locations in the United States – Shelton, Conn., and Memphis, Tenn. Further defining the company’s niche offerings in the industry is a group within Orchid Design’s facility in Shelton that specializes in cutting instruments such as drills, rasps, reamers, and saw blades.

The medical device engineers had a tensile-test machine in the lab, but found they really needed to perform torque measurements. They asked the manufacturer of their existing test machine if it could be adapted for torque testing. The answer was yes, but the cost was prohibitive.

To complicate the situation, they needed to perform two very different kinds of torque tests, says Spencer Shore, a development engineer at Orchid Design. Testing bone screws required a high-torque spindle that could have a low maximum speed. Testing drill bits required a high-speed spindle that would not need as much torque.

They searched for a vendor that could supply what they were looking for and found ADMET, a manufacturer of materials testing systems that is accustomed to adapting equipment according to customer requirements.

“On cost and customization, they worked with us,” Shore says.

Vinny Milano, ADMET account director for biomedical and testing lab sectors, diagnosed what Orchid Design was trying to do and suggested a solution: a tabletop test frame with two interchangeable spindles.

Early in 2013, Orchid Design took delivery of an ADMET eXpert 9612 vertical torsion testing system with an MTESTQuattro PC-based controller. The system came with two interchangeable spindles: the standard 20Nm (177inch-lb) 90rpm spindle and a 2Nm (18inch-lb) 5,300rpm spindle.
 

Outside the box

The system worked well. However, before long, a different testing opportunity arose. In the past, to evaluate the performance of blades on an oscillating saw, the speed of cutting to a certain depth had been measured with a stopwatch. What if the displacement sensor on the ADMET test system could be used to indicate the cut’s progress, and the ADMET controller could be used to drive the saw and collect data? This had nothing to do with torque, but the engineers at Orchid Design came up with a test fixture that could make it work. They just needed to interface with the controller.

“We wanted to drive the customer’s power system from the ADMET software,” Shore explains. “If it can drive a spindle, we figured it could drive the saw. So, we contacted ADMET and said, ‘We need this current and these leads.’”

In a couple of days, they received the custom hardware for making the connections and were able to start running tests.
 

By the numbers

“The ADMET system has rounded out and expanded our capabilities, and it has led to new opportunities,” Shore says. “For example, a colleague was working on a blade product and when we won the business, we used the testing system to advance the project further, faster.”

“Having that test capability has also increased our ability to do cutting edge instrument design and development work,” says Peter Bayer, Orchid Design business development manager. “It has allowed us to go to the next level,” for example, in comparing a next generation product to a previous version.

“It gives us comprehensive information about the cutting rate of blade A vs. blade B,” Bayer explains. “It lets us characterize that in a very unambiguous way. It produces a nice curve so you can look at the transient that occurs when [the instrument] first starts cutting, in contrast to when the drill or blade has full engagement with the material.

“We’ve definitely gotten work geared to comparing multiple designs for high performance applications,” Bayer states. “Which blade performs the best? That sort of work – optimizing these instruments – wouldn’t be possible without the ADMET system.

“We’ve had clients who were very interested in [the testing]. It gives them very objective data, instead of subjective surgeon feedback, and they can use the data as a marketing tool,” Bayer comments. “Our focus is on the client and the client is trying to put good instruments into the operating room for the patient.”

The ultimate goal is better outcomes, with decreased operation time and instruments that cut more quickly and precisely,” Bayer states.

An engineering partnership Orchid Design quickly found ways to start taking advantage of the capabilities and flexibility offered by its ADMET testing system. In addition, a relationship has developed between the two companies.

“We speak the same language of responsiveness, teamwork, and innovation,” Shore notes, and he looks forward to continued collaboration.

“It was a really good match between the two teams,” Bayer says. “ADMET got what we were trying to do and was able to provide a solution well-fitted to our needs and our goals.”

“It was great to see our technology configured to meet and exceed the expectations of Orchid Design,” Milano says. “To help customers improve their performance and ideally enhance their capabilities are goals we strive for with every project. But it takes a collaborative partner such as Orchid Design to achieve that.”

ADMET
www.admet.com

Orchid Design
https://www.orchid-ortho.com/

Learn about ADMET
ADMET is a global manufacturer of material testing systems that are capable of simulating real-world conditions. Every system can perform tension, compression, flexural, adhesive, torsion, biaxial, and fatigue testing to ASTM and ISO standards. Custom-designed systems fit specific needs and enable testing solutions for virtually any medical application.