Medbio Acquires Polymer Conversions
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PREMIER MEDICAL DEVICE MANUFACTURER MEDBIO ACQUIRES POLYMER CONVERSIONS
Grand Rapids, Mich., August 31, 2020 – Medbio, LLC ("Medbio"), a contract manufacturer specializing in clean room injection molding of plastic components for the medical and biotechnology industries, has acquired Polymer Conversions, Inc. (“PCI”). Together these businesses create a premier medical device manufacturing company, capable of supporting the rapid growth of the company’s customers. Medbio is a portfolio company of Graham Partners, a private investment firm targeting industrial technology and advanced manufacturing companies.
Headquartered in Western New York, Polymer Conversions (www.polymerconversions.com) is a full-service medical device contract manufacturer that specializes in complex thermoplastic injection molding and value-add assembly. PCI is highly complementary to the existing Medbio platform, expanding the company’s geographic presence, while creating cross-selling opportunities across an attractive base of blue-chip medical device customers. The acquisition of PCI is also expected to present significant operational and commercial synergies as PCI joins Medbio. Chris Williams, Medbio CEO, stated, “I’m looking forward to partnering with the PCI team to expand Medbio’s manufacturing capabilities, while reaching new customers and end markets.”
About Medbio (www.medbioinc.com)
Medbio is an ISO 13485:2016-certified medical contract manufacturer specializing in clean room injection molding, assembly, and packaging. Medbio is currently building products for the orthopedic, cardiovascular, ophthalmology, neurology, and biotechnology OEMs. Headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the company manufactures single-use, disposable products for high-growth end markets and is differentiated by its ability to serve as a one-stop-shop for outsourced manufacturing. Medbio has posted 15 years of growth, and now has multiple facilities in four geographic locations in Michigan and New York. Follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook.
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CONTACT:
John Woodhouse
(616) 245-0214 Ext. 113
Medbio, Inc.
jwoodhouse@medbioinc.com
Reading Between the Lines: Comparing “Apples to Apples” with your Medical Device Injection Molding RFQ’s
There are many different ways for a supplier to answer a Request for Quote. The lowest price may not always be the most complete analysis of the overall process. A higher than expected price however, may actually be the most comprehensive and accurate quote for a full range of services. It may also be the one that best fits your long-term needs.
After confirming that a non-disclosure agreement is in place, the typical RFQ always includes the product part number(s), annual usage estimates, CAD drawing & material/part/packaging specs, whether the product requires a clean room, and whether the project just involves medical injection molding or if it also includes assembly, decorating and/or specialty packaging prior to final boxing.
So after firming up your project requirements, you offer RFQ’s to some of your manufacturing partners as well as some other prospective associates. Before long, the quotes arrive and they are analyzed for compliance with your original terms.
Perhaps you find two competitors who seem to be close in their quotes for services. Now it is time to drill down further to see if you can find the best solution for your needs. At this point you want to ensure that their technical capabilities & expertise match your project requirements and that you have found a true partner to help move you forward.
Finally, a source is chosen to provide the product, and your team has chosen the supplier based on the lowest price. All seems well for some time. The sample submissions meet your specifications, the product testing shows full compliance with your needs, and all applicable government regulations are met. You are ready to move forward with production.
Components roll into your facility and are ready for their final processes before the product is shipped to your customers. Everything works as projected and it appears that everyone is happy. This seems to be the case until your company begins receiving invoices from the supplier, and then the smiles begin to fade. There is a discrepancy between the quote and the invoices.
Obviously there is some concern. The explanation is that while the quote for the component is accurate, the invoice includes such things as development costs, tooling or molding charges, a “price increase” for raw material post-quote, or even the purchase of new equipment for the supplier. What happened?
While this may be a case of “bait and switch”, it’s also possible that it’s the result of not comparing apples to apples. It turns out that the supplier chosen had an original quote that was for the actual component only, EXCLUSIVE of other costs. The potential partner that was rejected as being too high is contacted and now recognized for having included all of their expected costs up front in the quote. That explains the difference and unfortunately you are now stuck in a contract that costs your company much more than anticipated.
How can this situation be avoided? Some suppliers will tell you it’s simply the cost of doing business and that you should anticipate “extra” costs if you are not specific enough in your RFQ. But you can’t seem to shake the feeling that it is really the supplier who may have acted a bit unethically.
Trust, honesty and transparency are vitally important in partnerships. It is even more important when your business includes life-saving or life-sustaining technology in the medical device industry. Injection molded medical devices and device components are becoming more and more prevalent in hospitals,doctor’s offices and for in-home use. From disinfectant-compatible housings to implantable components, the technology advances rapidly.
Along those same lines, your RFQ needs to keep pace with rapid industry changes. Not only should the requirements be detailed as early on as possible, but they also need to include expectations of each process, from development through to production. Only then can you be sure that you are making accurate comparisons and avoiding unpleasant surprises.
At Polymer Conversions, we want to make sure that you are getting the most in-depth and accurate quote possible. When we anticipate producing an injection molded medical device or device component, our quote to you is complete. There are no hidden costs, no “bait and switch”, and no unethical intentions. We make sure that we start risk assessment & mitigation right from the RFQ stage. Our staff will ask a multitude of questions and we tend to take our time because we have a cross-functional team that will think of every possible resource & process that will touch their department and what it will take for their team to provide the highest quality of service possible. All of that data then gets compiled and reviewed to ensure we meet and exceed the customers’ expectations for world-class products & services.
As a family-owned company, our reputation is everything to us. We have a highly trained and dedicated staff ready to fulfill your requirements from design enhancements, to tool-making, to complete medical device fulfillment, our team is at your disposal.
To start a conversation with us about your next exciting project, contact Mr. Ben Harp by phone or email: bharp@polymerconversions.com / 716-662-8550 x-504 today.
Material Selection for Medical Device Manufacturability
Choosing the right material in the earliest stages of research & development can make all the difference in beating your competitors to market. Prolonging the materials selection process can later lead to increased project costs, development delays and manufacturing setbacks. And let’s face it - the race for 501k approvals can be brutal. With the right team at your side every step of the way, it can help make t
his process more expedient and bearable.
When choosing a material for the development of your medical product, there are many factors that play into the decision making. A great medical device injection molding company should ask you an exorbitant amount of questions during the R&D process. Topics involving regulatory concerns, device classification, ideal cost per pound range, characteristics of the product, how it’s handled by the end user and how it gets cleaned. There should be questions surrounding the design tolerances and whether they can be simplified for a lower overall project cost by focusing on design for manufacturability & functionality.
Questions regarding strength, durability, wear-resistance, extreme heat or cold tolerance, or whether it needs to be waterproof or water/chemical/body fluid resistant, will all help to determine whether the original resin needs to have an additive like a glass or mineral powder filler, a UV stabilizer, or one of many other products that can be added to a virgin, medical grade polymers to enhance the material’s properties. Thinking ahead to a post molding consideration is whether or not the product gets printed, has labels applied, and gets assembled, glued or welded together. Some materials perform better than others depending on the post-molding processes necessary.
Sometimes you’ll need to discuss biocompatibility (if the product is implantable). You may also have to consider whether the product needs to be anti-static, static dissipative, or have EMI/RFI shielding properties.
Will you want your manufacturer to add colored concentrate to natural resin at the press and risk having some parts produced slightly off color if the screw, barrel or concentrate delivery system does not work properly, or would you rather spend a little more by having the material supplier compound them together to create a customer color matched material that comes pre-colored to avoid variances during manufacturing?
You’ll need to contemplate aesthetic features that the final product should have in order for the best overall results and end-user experience, rather than letting a marketing department decide how the device should look as it’s coming out of the package. Texture, grip, fingerprint resistance, etc. all need to be discussed ahead of time because it will make a difference in which materials are looked at and whether or not the tool cavities need to be textured for the right effect or material release. Many products that are used in a hospital or doctor’s office where fluid may be present, get what is known as an “over-molded” process that adds a layer of grip and slip-resistant thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) on top of the molded product. That too should be decided early on, so that the process can be done simultaneously to the medical device injection molding stage. For parts that need to be flexible, the differences between using a TPE or Silicone needs to be addressed. Silicone has become a popular choice for some medical components and it lends itself well to sterilization, which is another process that must be determined up front. Does the final product/packaging need sterilization, and if so, by what method?
Finally, there is the question of which resin supplier? It should be a reputable company with a proven history of providing quality, medical-grade polymers that has acceptable lead times, great on-time delivery performance, price breaks at quantities that make sense for the customer, and that has a proven record of being flexible and working with the customer to provide a true win-win partnership.
No resin on the planet can ever be the right one, without first honing in on the best product design. Even more important than the plastic it’s made from, the product design can be critical to a life or death situation with the user. This means, no one usually gets the design right the first time. The design often evolves through several iterations as material flow modeling shows how the material reacts with the design (shrink, warp & cooling rates of the material during the injection molding process), how well all the components fit together for assembly, and ultimately how the final product will function out in the field.
Your product’s success is partly dependent on working with a medical device injection molding partner that excels in the plastics industry and maintains superior skillsets in design, materials selection, clean room manufacturing, assembly, decorating and packaging techniques.
Did you know that the Polymer Conversions team has incredible breadth of knowledge in medical device injection molding materials?
Did you know that our C.O.O. came to us from the resin industry and brings materials science expertise to the table? Each of our project engineers are well versed in highly engineered thermoplastic resins, design for manufacturability and metal to plastic design conversions. Our team understands the suppliers’ pricing structures, the quality & characteristics of plastic resins, and how the global markets for gas and oil can affect the plastics industry. We maintain an excellent partnership with world-class resin suppliers, and where appropriate, we’ll actually bring the supplier in for our design meeting with the customer. The customer then gets two sets of materials experts in the room to help them with their choice, giving them the satisfaction of knowing they made the right decision early on.
To sit down with our team and discuss materials selection for your next big project, contact our C.O.O., Mr. Ben Harp, at 716-662-8550 x-504 or email: sales@polymerconversions.com.
Bigger isn’t Always Better for Your Supplier
So you start out your day by brushing up with the latest business developments.
BIG MONEY NOW NEWS: Dateline 8/11/2016
Frank Executive, CEO for Giant Corp, announced today that the Medical Device Injection Molding Division of his company would be moved to a current off-shore facility as a cost-cutting initiative. Mr. Executive stated that this specific shift could save the company at least $50 million per year. He further stated that this “strategic business move would concentrate manufacturing resources into fewer locations, improving product build efficiency and better utilizing plant capacity. While the shift to a larger factory would have some short-term associated costs, corporate leadership believes that this move would ensure continued sales growth. We expect no impact on our customers during this shift. Additionally, we anticipate continued profitability given current and future rates of production.”
As the company shifts the division to the larger facility, approximately 500 current workers would be affected in areas of fabrication, assembly, warehouse and plant administration. Some employees at the middle management level could be offered transfers to oversee the production move. Other employees may be able to move to different U.S. or global operations. Company officials believe there will be less movement with that division’s sales, engineering and customer service employees. “We understand that this decision will have a large impact on some of our employees, their families, and the community. However, we have committed to treating our departing employees respectfully and will ensure a smooth transition,” stated Vice President for Human Resources Candide Official.
Mr. Executive also stated that this move should be accomplished in less than a year since retrofitting of the offshore facility is nearly complete. He noted that the majority of the relocation and related expenses will occur before the next corporate annual meeting, scheduled for June 2017. Corporate officials expect that the increased financial gains anticipated due to this move will be seen by stockholders via increased stock value in late 2017.
So that’s how you find out that your supplier is moving their production division out of the U.S. - on a business news website. You’re confused and somewhat concerned. While that article states that there will be no disruption to future orders, you’re not so sure. Some of your company’s staff has visited the current manufacturing facility numerous times over the years and they have gotten to know many members of the production team. This change probably means that a number of them will lose their jobs or possibly relocate. Will the employees at the offshore facility take the same care or will there be problems and delays? It’s certainly hard to know at this point.
As you re-read the article a statement jumps out at you, “continued profitability given current and future rates of production.” And then another, “increased financial gains anticipated due to this move will be seen by stockholders via increased stock value”. That all sounds like they expect to continue their current pricing structure. This move isn’t intended to reduce prices to their customers but to make more profit. It might seem logical to think that if their costs are going down, your costs probably should as well. That doesn’t look to be the case.
This situation is all too common in today’s business world. A company moves their production to a more “business friendly” state or even out of the country altogether. This type of situation often has unforeseen ripple effects through the company that is moving as well as among the customers of that company. Quality control issues, production delays, and shipping problems are only some of the effects that could occur. All of those factors and more could change your own company’s profitability projections.
What does this all mean to you? That is really the bottom line. First of all, you should be evaluating your medical device injection molding suppliers regularly. Develop a matrix that you can use to determine that your supplier is still meeting your increasing needs. This could include measurables such as production turnaround time, supply chain considerations, and quality control as well as supplier responsiveness and flexibility to your ever changing needs. Second, it is always good to consider, or project, your company’s future needs compared to the trends you may see in how your supplier does business. Try to gauge the direction of this ongoing relationship.
How do you know that your supplier may be too big to fit your needs going forward? Some of the signs could be that the relationship no longer provides mutual benefits, or that your calls are not returned in a timely manner, or that your point of contact is always changing; leaving you to constantly reiterate your program needs. It might be that your supplier moves too far away and it causes transportation and delivery delays.
It all boils down to this question; do you want the biggest supplier that originally offered you the lowest price to win your business, or the best long-term partner?
No matter how you make the determination, there comes a time when you decide that your supplier is too big or is just no longer fulfilling your needs. When that occurs, think about Polymer Conversions to supply your tools, thermoplastic & silicone medical device injection molding, assembly, decorating and packaging. We’re big enough to do the job right the first time and small enough to respond quickly when you need us. We’ve been here for over 37 years and will continue to be here to serve and support your company’s growth agenda and our community. You’ll get the same cross-functional support team with every project you send our way, and will never have to worry about the future or quality of relationships being built.
Contact Mr. Ben Harp at bharp@polymerconversions.com/(716) 662-8550 to open a dialogue about what you truly need and how we can help you meet and exceed those well-deserved expectations.
Is it Time to Break Up with Your Medical Device Supplier?
The whole relationship started out so easily. You had what Hollywood calls a “meet cute” near the coffee table at a medical device trade show. At lunch the next day you found out that both of your companies had a number of commonalities within the industry. You made arrangements to discuss moving forward over dinner. By the last day of the show, you both felt you were ready to take things to the next level.
At the beginning, everything was easy. You were each trying hard to please the other. Little expressions of compatibility were shared. The relationship blossomed. Soon, you both thought you were ready for the next step; a long-term exclusive contract. This commitment was serious.
Over time, however, you and your supplier both seemed to drift apart. They started missing a deadline here and there. Nothing serious, we all make mistakes. Soon some of the products became out of spec and they slipped through QC. Before you knew it, you found yourself looking longingly at other medical device injection molding companies for a true partnership potential. You just needed more. You have a few surreptitious meetings with “the others” but you feel guilty and break things off before it goes too far. You’re looking for something new but it feels disloyal somehow. You feel like you’re stuck and there’s no way out. You’re at a dead end.
Business relationships can sometimes be compared to interpersonal relationships. Every business union follows an arc and some of those unions are destined for a breakup. Just like in life, it’s usually not a specific fault or failing, sometimes two businesses just grow at different rates. Perhaps your product line has shifted, or you’re branching into new markets. Sometimes your supplier is acquired or goes out of business. No matter how you get to this point, sometimes you just need to grow in a different direction.
In a perfect business world it should be easy enough to obtain a “business divorce”. Perhaps all you need to do is have a frank conversation. It is possible to have an amicable parting of ways. If both parties agree, it should be relatively easy to mutually end the association and/or contract. Of course there are other, more protracted and painful, ways to accomplish this. But hopefully you won’t need to go that route.
Now it’s on to finding a new medical device injection molding partner. That could be as easy as asking for new quotes from suppliers you have already spoken with about meeting your needs. Or it may involve a little research to find the right partner. Either way it can be a fresh start. And it can reinvigorate your business.
Polymer Conversions can be the medical device injection molding extension of your business.
We provide world-class quality and highly technical contract manufacturing solutions for medical devices and other precision thermoplastic & silicone products. You benefit from the full-service processes of tight-tolerance tooling, molding, assembly, decorating and packaging of Class 7 (10,000) and Class 8 (100,000) medical device/healthcare products. You also have access to our advanced engineering team who are specialists in our industry and can partner with your team to help solve difficult issues. They can assist with design for manufacturability, metal to plastic part conversions, materials selection, streamlining the manufacturing process, and part/process validations.
For those of you looking for customized medical device injection molding, perhaps it is time for you to check out Polymer Conversions. With more than 37 years of evolving experience, you’ll get the proactivity, flexibility and the customer service you deserve.
If you have specific questions, please contact Mr. Benjamin Harp at 716-662-8550 ext. 504 / bharp@polymerconversions.com for prompt attention to your needs. We’re here to help your business and innovative medical device portfolio grow. Let’s talk about a partnership with real long-term potential!
Medical Device Development
Challenges Facing Medical Device Manufacturers
Polymer's sister company, SILIKON Technologies, participated in Medical Product Outsourcing's May issue article on the current challenges that healthcare companies face during the early stages of medical device development. Interviewed on behalf of Polymer & SILIKON, was our Director of Silicone Operations, Mr. Patrick Meheran. (www.SilikonTechnologies.com)
Medical Device Design & Development is critical to the advancements of true patient care excellence.
Contributing Writer to MPO, Mark Crawford touches upon the key elements of the following, in his captivating multi-page article:
- Device Size
- Device Complexity
- User Interfaces & Usability
- Prototyping & 3D Capabilities (Additive Manufacturing)
- Device Connectivity - wireless; mobile friendly; wearable; electronic records; software
- Key growth markets
- Device design software
- Design Partners
- Advances in technology
- Regulatory concerns
- Key drivers for the future
To read the full article "Developing Challenges" by Mark Crawford, click here: MPO - May Issue
Photograph provided by: Wendy Bertsch, Polymer Conversions, Inc.