29 September 2009

‘Metal Meets Medical’ Show to Debut at METAV

The manufacture of hip joints places great demands on the production technologies involved. The “Metal Meets Medical” show at METAV 2010 will demonstrate how these demands are met. Photo: Siemens AG, Erlangen.

The German manufacturing technology and medical engineering sectors are important to each other as, respectively, a supplier of sophisticated high-precision equipment and an attractive customer base that remains strong during economic downturns. This relationship will be recognized by the “Metal Meets Medical” show at METAV 2010.

Because the German medical technology industry is highly innovative, it occupies a leading position in the world market. It demands high quality from its suppliers, including extreme precision and perfect surface finishes, along with high process reliability and traceability of all manufacturing steps. These are all key attributes of German manufacturing technology. This is why the VDW (the German Machine Tool Builders’ Association) has organized “Metal Meets Medical,” where suppliers to the medical engineering sector will appear within a special exhibition framework at METAV, which takes place February 23–27 in Düsseldorf.

“The machine tool industry has a lot to offer to the medical engineering sector,” suggests Dr. Wilfried Schäfer, executive director of the VDW. “That’s why we want to provide an attractive special show at METAV 2010 for suppliers and their customers, an exhibition where suppliers can highlight their expertise to their full advantage.”

A highlight of the special show will be a “digital factory” display anchored by Siemens, which will join with machine tool, tooling, and metrology sector partners to present the complete process chain for producing medtech products. The concept focuses on integrated scheduling and implementation of basic production steps, on the efficient use of resources, and on the standardization and continuous improvement of manufacturing processes. In live demonstrations on the Siemens stand, says Karsten Schwarz, head of application technology at Siemens AG, Sector Industry, Drive Technologies, Motion Control Systems, several different machine tools will be employed to machine medical products representing a variety of technologies.

“Metal Meets Medical” will be complemented by an expert forum featuring lectures and roundtable discussions covering such topics as manufacturing processes, technical and business conditions, and regulations and legislation governing medical manufacturing.

“More and more manufacturing technology suppliers who want to expand their customer base are turning to the medical engineering market,” says the VDW’s Schäfer. “With our special event at METAV 2010, we want to help all of them successfully address the needs of this market.”

For further information:

METAV 2010
Düsseldorf, Germany
www.metav.de