Five-Minute Interview

Q If I wasn’t talking to you right now, what would you be doing?
A I’ve been developing a modification to the manufacturing process of our Chondromimetic regenerative implant to improve the consistency of its manufacture. It is quite a change for a mechanical engineer to be mixing chemicals and analysing mixing and freezedrying processes. We will be implementing the change soon, so it is important to characterise the control parameters completely.

Q How did you get into the industry?
A I contacted someone who had been in my course at Imperial College in London after having been told that he was working for an engineering consultancy with interesting projects. It was a happy coincidence that he had moved on to a medical device company by the time I contacted him, and he introduced me to some of his colleagues.

Q What is the best thing about your work?
A Working for a small medical device development company means that there is always plenty of variety in the work that is needed. In the past three years that I have worked at my current company, I’ve worked on batch mixing processes, developed an indepth understanding of freeze drying, prototyped a new minimally invasive instrument that is now patented, and designed an automated implant cutting system.

Q What do you think is the most important medical device invention ever?
A An incredible transformation in quality of life and freedom from pain can be achieved through the use of prosthetic joints such as hips and knees. My family are a bionic lot, with a collection of four joints of varying types spread across three generations. Obviously I am now working to delay or remove the need for these types of joints; however, they currently play a tremendous part in many people’s lives.

Q What should people give more attention to?

A
It is easy to get sucked into devoting a huge amount of effort into work, especially in small companies. Without taking a conscious choice to observe limits, personal and family life can easily be pushed aside. Although this is necessary for everyone at times, we all need to pay attention to our own limits, based on circumstances that shift regularly, and not simply “go with the flow.”

Q What is the most exciting development on the horizon?
A Working in a regenerative medical device company, the most exciting development that is likely to affect us directly is just over the horizon. This will be when, through drug treatment or cell therapy, the human body can be stimulated to regenerate good quality tissues to recover from debilitating conditions such as osteoarthritis.

Q What do you want from your suppliers
A The two essential aspects that I value when working with any supplier are honesty and commitment. To build a trusting relationship it is essential that suppliers are honest about their capabilities and their ability to meet the requirements, and that they commit to realistic deliverables, which they then achieve!

Q What are your goals in the coming 12 months?
A Within the next five months our single use minimally invasive procedure pack will be launched onto the European market. This provides a simpler and easier-to-use instrument set than current reusable instruments. To achieve this, we need to work with a variety of subcontract suppliers and ensure that all the necessary validated parts arrive together for packing. Following this, we are planning to evaluate several critical manufacturing steps to improve process efficiency.