Elevaris Medical Devices, a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) for industry-leading, multi-national healthcare companies, global medical device manufacturers, and emerging technology companies, is leaning into live prototyping to help manufacturers accelerate the research and development cycle, reduce costs, and increase speed to market.

Better than industry-standard rapid prototyping, Elevaris Medical Devices offers the XLerator live prototyping program, where industry engineers collaborate on-site with Elevaris experts to utilize a development environment within the company's manufacturing space. Throughout the accelerated experience Elevaris provides a complete team of technical support, including project engineers, process development engineers, manufacturing technicians, and machine operators. The offering also includes access to all the company's manufacturing process technology and inspection capabilities. 

"An XLerator Day presents an opportunity for product engineers to resolve design challenges or elevate existing designs," said Valor Thomas, Director of Business Development at Elevaris Medical Devices. "There's a certain energy attached to the experience, where combined expertise lends to flexible thinking, and tactile input enables real-time design adjustments."

The benefits of this approach are significant. With live prototyping, customers experience:

• Direct connection to CDMO engineers and direct access to the technology and development process, helping them understand the viability of the project and its potential delivery earlier in the development program
• Complete visibility into the manufacturing process, helping them understand design opportunities and constraints more quickly
• An expedited product development timeline
• Reduced development cost
• Accelerated time to market

"The key is that every project is different, but with factory-wide access, CAD programs, machining, cleaning, and inspection, we can help customers significantly streamline the 'rinse and repeat' rounds of prototyping as they typically know them," said James Bate, Director of Engineering at Elevaris Medical Devices. "We test parts live on the table, and we've transformed into a single day what used to take weeks or months."

In a particular instance, Surgin Inc., an engineering development company based in the United States, needed assistance in solving for flexibility in tubing. Where the customer originally incorporated a straight tube into its device design, the team discovered the need for a more flexible tube size to enable manufacturability. Based on the discovery, the engineering team was able to devise a more appropriate design.

The customer specifically lauded the knowledge and expertise of Elevaris engineers, availability of services and concierge-like approach to development, which "significantly streamlined our process."

Surgin Inc. participants went on to say, "We saved countless hours during our two days with the XLerator team. They were wonderful in preparing samples for our visit and flexible with our changing requests. Their openness about processes and insights into what would work best for our project needs was greatly appreciated. Specifically, the engineering and technical support on the laser cutting and welding machines greatly accelerated our development. It's clear why they are the go-to firm for both small and large companies developing new products."