Summary
In 2010, a customer asked Elos to help resolve a performance issue with a bone pin supplied by another manufacturer. Surgeons had reported overheating during use. Drawing on its experience in high-volume bone pin production, Elos worked with the customer to compare the required clinical performance with the drawing and the supplied component. The teams then developed, tested and refined a new cutting-tip and thread geometry before transferring the validated design into serial production.
The Challenge
In 2010, a customer identified a performance problem in the operating room. Surgeons were dissatisfied with an existing bone pin, manufactured by another supplier, because it overheated during surgery and, in some cases, produced smoke.
The customer already knew Elos as a specialist in bone pins. Decades of experience in high-volume production and a strong track record in this area made Elos a credible partner for investigating the issue.
Elos’s role was to investigate the cause of the performance issue, develop an improved design with the customer and support its transfer into serial production.
The Approach
The investigation began by defining the required performance in surgery: what surgeons expected from the product and where the existing pin fell short. Elos then compared these requirements with the customer’s drawing and the supplied component to assess whether the issue related to the design, the manufacturing execution or both. Physical testing was used to verify how the component performed in practice and to guide the subsequent concept development.
Based on the initial review, Elos and the customer selected three concepts that combined different cutting-tip geometries with an optimized thread design. This provided sufficient variation to compare the approaches without making the evaluation unnecessarily complex. Testing showed that the cutting action of the tip needed to match the advancement rate of the threads. When the two fell out of sync, cutting performance deteriorated and heat increased.
Elos manufactured the prototypes and prepared the in-house test set-up before inviting the customer’s engineers to join the testing in bovine bone. This allowed the teams to review the concepts together and gather immediate feedback. Extra unfinished blanks were available so that details could be machined and retested during the same visit where needed.
The collaborative process moved from technical discussion and concept development through prototype manufacture, testing and refinement. Individual adjustments identified during the on-site session could be completed within a couple of days, while the full development—from defining the problem to agreeing the new cutting-tip and thread geometry—took approximately six to eight weeks.
The Result
The redesigned bone pin addressed the overheating issue and delivered the improved cutting performance the customer was looking for.
The specific bone pin remained in use 16 years after the project. The cutting geometry developed through the work was also applied to other products and applications with similar cutting requirements, showing that the solution had relevance beyond the original component.
Once the design had been validated, Elos was able to transfer it into serial production. This gave the customer continuity from development into production and established a relationship that continued over many years.
Looking Beyond the Immediate Problem
Although the immediate task was to improve a bone pin, the project illustrates how Elos approaches similar technical problems: establish the required clinical performance, compare it with the design and manufactured component, and refine the solution through physical testing and customer feedback.
Because Elos could manufacture the validated design within its established quality system and supply chain, the customer could continue with the same partner from development into reliable serial production.
This case shows how early engineering involvement can help customers:
- Identify the root cause of performance issues
- Evaluate and validate alternative design concepts
- Optimize the interaction between critical design features
- Accelerate development through rapid iteration
- Improve performance while addressing identified issues
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