Developing high volume manufacturing strategies requires a manufacturer to look at every aspect of their business. Phillips Precision Medicraft, keenly focused on bridging the gap between engineering ideas and manufacturing, understood this and began planning and preparing short/long term strategies for specific implant products. Allocating the necessary capital investments, application of LEAN / 5S strategies, and the evaluation of new technologies was just the beginning. Interestingly, selecting the right equipment vendors proved to be another critical component. PPM’s mission was clear, invest in technology and training to dramatically increase, speed, and capacity to better serve OEM customers.
PPM implemented the plan this year, beginning with several new dedicated manufacturing cells for select products, adding new technology to increase capacity, and managed manufacturing process controls fluidly. Our most recent investment in palletized machining centers is a great example of choosing the right type of technology for the given manufacturing circumstance and the right vendor partner in Makino. The combined R & D between the teams was spot on. Today the new system has reduced setups, is running components on-demand and in some cases are running lights out. Another key selection was the purchase of several Index Traub systems. This team also worked closely with PPM to truly understand specific manufacturing goals, then used their expertise and product knowledge to adapt the capabilities of their systems fully; the results have worked exceedingly well.
PPMs engineering team also plays a critical role when it comes to high-volume manufacturing by applying PPM’s own unique brand of DFM (design for manufacturability). The DFM process is applied before a product hits the manufacturing floor and often impacts speed and the cost of running a high volume implant operation.
As parts become smaller and more tightly dimensioned, the equipment utilized in years past is no longer capable of machining today’s challenging designs. This is the very reason PPM has made the most significant capital investment in recent years.
2019 PPM will celebrate 50 years of manufacturing high-quality products and will continue to adapt its manufacturing facilities and capabilities to meet the demands of today’s orthopedic marketplace.
To learn more, email: info@PhillipsMedicraft.com.