Medical Instruments Wet Blasting

Finishing medical instruments by wet blasting for exceptional quality and regulatory compliance

 

Medical instruments play a crucial role in the field of healthcare and medicine. They are essential tools used by healthcare professionals to diagnose, treat, monitor, and manage various medical conditions. 

Surface finishing in medical instrument manufacturing plays a crucial role for several reasons:

If you are already familiar with the importance of correctly surface finishing medical instruments scroll down to the benefits of finishing medical instruments by wet blasting.

  • Ease of cleaning and sterilisation: Surfaces manufactured to the correct range of Ra surface roughness are easier to sterilise, reducing the chances of bacterial growth or contamination. This is vital for maintaining hygiene and preventing infections during medical procedures.
  • Corrosion resistance: Medical instruments often encounter bodily fluids and sterilisation processes. Proper surface finishing can enhance corrosion resistance, ensuring the instrument's longevity and reliability.
  • Precision and functionality: Surface finishing impacts the precision and functionality of medical instruments. For example, a smoother surface on surgical tools reduces friction, allowing for more precise movements during surgeries.
  • Aesthetics and perception: The appearance of medical instruments matters, not just for professional reasons but also for patient confidence. Well-finished instruments convey quality and reliability, impacting patient perception and trust in medical procedures.
  • Reduced wear and tear: Proper surface finishing can minimise wear and tear, ensuring that the instruments maintain their functionality over time. This is particularly important for instruments used repeatedly in surgeries or medical procedures.
  • Minimisation of contamination: Finishing processes can create surfaces that are less prone to trapping contaminants, minimising the risk of particles breaking off and causing issues during medical procedures.

In summary, surface finishing isn't just about aesthetics; it's about ensuring the functionality, safety, and reliability of medical instruments in their critical role in patient care and healthcare practices.

The benefits of finishing medical instruments by wet blasting

Wet blasting, also known as vapor blasting or aqua blasting, offers several benefits when used for cleaning and preparing medical instruments, including:

  • Creation of a surface that is perfect for sterilisation: Wet blasting can produce a surface roughness typically between 0.25 and 0.6µm Ra – the optimum surface Ra for instruments that need to be perfectly sterilised. Learn more about wet blasting for sterilisation.
  • Efficient removal of burrs and contaminants: Wet blasting is highly effective at removing burrs, contaminants, oxides, scale, debris, and other residues from the surfaces of medical instruments. This ensures the instruments are thoroughly cleaned and free from potentially harmful substances. The result is a pristine finish that enhances the functionality and aesthetic appeal of the instruments.
  • Gentle on delicate instruments: Wet blasting is a relatively gentle surface cleaning method, making it suitable for delicate medical instruments that require careful handling to avoid damage. The process uses a mix of water, abrasive media, and air pressure, reducing the risk of scratching or denting the instruments.
  • Creation of non-reflective surfaces: Reflections from instrument surfaces during procedures can be an irritating distraction. Wet blasting can produce a surface that minimises unwanted reflections whilst maintaining an optimum Ra surface roughness for sterilisation.
  • Reduced surface contamination: Wet blasting significantly reduces dust and airborne particles, creating a cleaner working environment. This is especially important in the medical field, where cleanliness and hygiene are paramount. The process helps maintain the integrity of your instruments and the overall hygiene of your facility.
  • Enhanced uniform surface finish: Wet blasting can achieve a consistent surface finish across the entire instrument, enhancing the instrument's aesthetics and functionality. Our automated range of wet blasting machines, ensures excellent repeatability.

  • Reduced risk of corrosion: Wet blasting removes corrosion or oxidation from the surface of metal instruments, helping to extend their lifespan and maintain their functionality over time. The inclusion of corrosion inhibitors in the wet blasting process can further help with this.

  • Improved coating adhesion: For instruments that require subsequent coating or plating processes, wet blasting can improve the adhesion of these coatings by creating a surface with an optimum Ra for the coating in question, ensuring a more durable and reliable finish.
  • Post coating peening: Wet blasting can peen coatings once applied to the instrument, converting tensile stresses to compressive stresses and significantly improving the durability of the coating.
  • Safe and environmentally friendly finishing: Wet blasting typically uses water and a blast media, eliminating the generation of dust that is typical of dry blasting methods. This, in conjunction with the elimination of harsh chemicals, makes it a relatively environmentally friendly process. Learn more about the HSE benefits of wet blasting.
  • Versatility: Wet blasting can be used for a variety of materials commonly found in medical instruments, including metals, ceramics, and composites.
  • Precision and consistency: The wet blasting process allows for fine-tuning of parameters like pressure, media size, and media type, giving manufacturers precise control over the cleaning and surface preparation of medical instruments. In addition to unparalleled process control, automation ensures consistency, so the perfect finish is applied every time to meet the highest quality standards.
  • Compliance with regulatory standards: Properly cleaned and prepared medical instruments are essential for meeting regulatory requirements and ensuring patient safety. Wet blasting can aid in meeting these standards by providing a validated and controlled cleaning process.
  • Long-lasting results: The thorough cleaning achieved through wet blasting can provide long-lasting results, reducing the need for frequent replacement or maintenance of medical instruments.
Additive manufactured medical instruments

Thanks to recent advances in additive manufacturing (AM), medical instruments are increasingly manufactured using AM technology. Our wet blasting technology is highly suited to finishing AM components in all sorts of different industries including medical instrument manufacturing. Learn more about the advantages of finishing AM components by wet blasting.

 

Finishing medical instruments by wet blasting helps produce high quality, aesthetic, long-lasting instruments with a perfect Ra surface roughness for sterilisation. It is also a safe and environmentally friendly process when compared with the other type of blast finishing, dry blasting.

Contact us to find out how we can help improve your medical instrument finishing operation.

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