Meier Tool & Engineering's core business is the development and production of tight-tolerance, critical-to-function, metalformed components and sub-assemblies for demanding applications. Component sizes are small, miniature and micro-sized, ranging from as large as your thumb, down to the size of the head of a pin.
We are one of a few metalforming companies to be ISO 13485 certified. In being certified to this standard, MTE meets regulatory as well as customer requirements for risk management and maintaining effective processes specific to the safe design, manufacture and distribution of medical devices.
Throughout the entire product life-cycle, these quality disciplines enhance our ability to help clients achieve success in producing surgical instruments, hearing aids, implantable devices, and other applications.
FDA registered Meier Tool & Engineering offers expertise with stamped components for minimally invasive and micro-vasive surgical devices, test instruments, and implantable medical devices. Provides miniature stamped needles, biopsy jaws, laparoscopic forceps, lances, blades, and titanium implantables. Also expert in precision battery contacts and miniature electronic components. Product design and development assistance for high-volume stamped applications. Precision rapid prototyping and exemplary tooling capabilities.
http://www.meiertool.com/capabilities/capabilities.php
CAPABILITIES
Where market trends are leading toward smaller devices, product designers are increasingly challenged to develop higher performing components within smaller spaces. Our designers assist your engineers during the product design phase, providing innovative miniaturization techniques and DFM input. Our extensive knowledge in high performance material alloys and tempers, as well as our experience with engineered metal systems can be a resource for selecting the best material for your application.
We'll also provide prototyping services to prove out full functionality of your design, followed by production tooling, process qualification and ongoing production, all under one roof!
By using us to prototype your metalformed components and sub-assemblies, we can assist you in achieving your speed-to-market goals, providing you a competitive advantage.
Here are some benefits of using MTE's dedicated prototype team to quickly and accurately prototype your metalformed components and sub-assemblies:
- Quick turnaround on prototypes allow you to try several design concepts and choose the best one.
- Prove the design concept is manufacturable and meets all functional requirements.
- Our use of Solid Works, Pro-E, AutoCad, Solid Edge, and others provide ease of CAD file communication between MTE and your designers.
- By being involved in the early stages of your program, lessons learned during the prototyping process can be integrated into production.
- Standardized punch & die holders improve accuracy and reduce lead time.
- Highly trained toolmakers and prototype technicians experienced in miniaturization techniques.
- Experience using high performance alloys and tempers to prove out the best material for your application.
Our advanced in-house tooling team, equipped with modern technology, produces the precise dies and fixtures used in our metalforming & assembly operations.
Our highly skilled team is equipped with state of the art 3D Solid modeling CAD systems, CNC machining centers, CNC wire EDM and high speed hard milling capabilities.
With production order quantities ranging from a few dozen to millions, our team of trained technicians stand ready to serve you on your most challenging projects.
Precision Components and Subassemblies
We offer sub-assembly services through either manual, semi-automated or fully automated processes depending on the level of precision and throughput rate needed.
We provide completely finished products ready for your final assembly. This is accomplished by performing value added secondary operations either through our in-house capabilities or our approved subcontractors.
Operations include:
- Cleaning (Ultrasonic)
- Tapping (Threading of discrete parts or automated in-die tapping)
- CNC machining of pre-stamped blanks
- Staking (Manual or automated in-die joining of components)
- Countersinking
- Deburring (Tumbling, Cryogenics, Harperizing/Centrifugal, Electropolishing)
- Plating: Reel-to-reel plating of continuous pre-formed or post-plated parts)
- Pre-processed precious metal inlayed strip
- Plating: rack or barrel of discrete parts
- Passivating
- Heat treating
- Anodizing
- Surface Texturing
- Packaging
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| Grasping Forceps |
We recently completed the development of our rapid prototype system that allows for quick turn-around of precision metal stampings (http://www.meiertool.com/markets-served/medical.php)with a process that closely simulates the results of a high speed progressive die. Engineering and development costs are kept to a minimum through the use of interchangeable tooling components. Only the tooling that is specific to the product design is custom made. This tooling is inserted into a prototype system that cuts and forms with the same process used in the production operation. Using this method, prototypes most closely resemble the end product by displaying typical cut-by, shear, and other features that only result from stamping the parts during high volume production. Prototype development results are fed into the progressive die design to ensure product quality on the first volume production run. Components as thin as .001” are produced this way. Any number of alloys are used, including stainless steels, titanium, nickel, beryllium copper, and precious metals. Prototypes can be designed and manufactured in 1-4 weeks, depending on complexity.
MINIATURIZATION
The MTE team has invested decades in the development of miniaturization techniques which allow us to precisely produce intricate, small, miniature, and micro-sized parts and sub-assemblies. This strength augments our customer's ability to launch demanding Medical/Surgical programs.
Industry trends towards miniaturization are driving the need for devices that:
- Are minimally invasive
- Have higher strength & higher performance
- Fit more complex geometry into a smaller space
- Require components with thinner wall sections down to .05mm(.002")
- Are more reliable with fewer field failures
Please visit our website at: www.meiertool.com
COST-SAVING CONVERSIONS
MTE has helped create a competitive advantage for numerous companies in the Medical Device Industry by converting their component manufacturing from other expensive processes to precision metalforming.
Components previously produced using the following processes are now being produced at MTE using the precision metalforming process. Potential conversion candidates are:
- Metal Injection Molding (MIM)
- Screw Machining
- CNC Machining
- Precision Casting
PRODUCTS: MTE supports clients that make or buy the following devices, sub-assemblies and components. We are seeking these as well as other development and production opportunities.
Implantable Devices & Components
- Anchow Tabs
- Bone Braces
- Defribillator Components
- Cardiac Pacemaker Components
- Electrodes
- Lamitrodes
- Lead Wires
- Marker Bands
- Micro-contacts
- Orientation Markers
- Radiopaque Markers
- Stent Markers
- Antennas
Hearing Devices
- Analog Hearing Aid Components
- Artificial Cochlear Components
- Digital Hearing Aid Components
- Battery Contacts Gold Plated Contacts
- Lead Frames
- Micro-contacts
- Variable Resistor Components
Disposable Devices & Components
- Alligartor Jaws
- Battery Tabs
- Biopsy Forcep Cups (Jaws)
- Biopsy Needles
- Bisector Blades
- Blade Assemblies
- Cardiac Instruments
- Clevisc
- Distal End Componentry
- Endscopic Devices
- Expandable Extenders
- Forceps Electrodes
- Hot Forceps
- Laparoscopic Devices
- Restraint Bands
- Ring Electrode Assemblies
- Surgical Scissor Blades
- Transmitter Contacts
MATERIALS
The MTE team has extensive experience working not only with the common alloys, but also the high performance alloys and various tempers used in Telecommunications, Hearing Health and other Electronic Industry Segments.
Alloys
- NiTiNOL (Memory Metal)
- 300 & 400 Series Stainless Steel
- MP35N
- Berylium Copper (BeCu)
- Phosphorus Bronze (Phos Bronze)
- Brasses
- Aluminum
- PH Grade Stainless Steel
- Nickel 200
- Titanium
- Magnesium
- Hastelloy
- Tantalum
- Permanickel
- Kovar
Precious Metals
- Platinum
- Gold
- Silver
- Iridium
- Nickel
- Silver
Engineered Metals
Precious metals such as gold, silver and palladium can be selectively plated onto the raw material coil prior to stamping. The benefits are to minimize the cost of the precious metal by placing it only in the functional areas and also to eliminate secondary processing.
Thin strips of precious metal can be bonded to the raw material to provide surface integrity superior to plating.
Dual-gauge or multi-guage strips can be skived prior to stamping to enable the manufacturer of profiled component parts with varying wall thicknesses.
Continuous strips of hardened tempered materials can be annealed in specific areas prior to stamping to provide localized ductility.
Read our tech article precision technology for producing medical devices.