MfgEng

Century spring is one of the industry standards for supplying spring components. I've used them across several of the companies I have been with due to their excellent quality, reliability, and customer service. Not to mention, pricing were competitive and they carry a good amount of inventory in stock, so lead times have been short in my experience. They are easy to work and recommend using their springs.

Strengths: Springs, Customer service, Reliable, Leadtimes, Price

Needs to improve: None

Stellar was able to help us where most vendors couldn't. Their attention to detail is superior and quality of components unmatched. I worked on a difficult component that went through several vendors until we finally approached Stellar. Their attention to detail finally allowed the nuisance of a component to be one that required minimal management thanks to the great team there. Pricing was a bit higher but was easily justified considering how many lots we had to scrap with other vendors. Highly recommended.

Strengths: Quality components, Technical capabilities, Customer service

Needs to improve: Pricing

Great quality nitinol tubes. Making small products, we require tolerances to be very tight and wall thickness to be uniform, which Vascotube meets well. Consistent and reliable from lot to lot. Efficient planning required as they are in Germany, to ensure on-time deliveries. However, they provide the best nitinol extrusions at an unbeatable price.

Strengths: Nitinol extrusion, Precise components, Price

Needs to improve: Location

Fluortek was used for colored heat shrink tubing which have been helpful during catheter manufacturing. The colors did not leech onto the product and they had adequate documentation to support biocomp requirements. I like using Flurotek because they were the first vendor we tried with colored heat shrink and their products were of great quality. Materials were consistent from lot to lot. Pricing was a bit higher than other heat shrink tubings that were used, but the coloring made the process most efficient.

Strengths: Reliable product, Wide selection, Extrusions

Needs to improve: Pricing, Leadtimes

I have worked with ICS on a couple catheter assembly systems for thermal bonding. Their systems are well made and provide good supporting documentations. They were on time with their orders and provided good technical support when it came to fine tune the programming of the system to fit our needs. Very well built and reliable system. As long as the system is properly maintained, the systems would will run smoothly.

Strengths: Process equipment, Reliable, Customer Service, Technical Support

Needs to improve: None

We had worked with Stack Plastics for injection molding of plastic components. We were tasked with qualifying a component and they were helpful with validating the molds and were on time with deliveries for validation builds. We had no issues with their parts. They were expedient and reliable and were easy to work with. Prices were comparable to other medical device manufacturers. They were just a convenient source at the time, but happy to work with them.

Strengths: Injection Molding, Technical Support, Customer service, Quality Products, Competitive Pricing

Needs to improve: None

We have used OT Precision for prototypes as well as some initial validation runs. The turnaround time was expedient, which helped us shorten our lead times for validations. They were highly capable machining tough features with tight tolerances, meeting our internal PPK requirements. They were receptive to all the demands to meet our quality standards, which made qualifying the vendor easy. Overall, a great machine shop from prototype to production.

Strengths: Small component machining, Tight tolerances, Technical support

Needs to improve: None

Plastikon supplied plastic injected molded parts for part of our medical device. They were a reliable source with quality components lot after lot. There was one instance where an alternate raw material had to be used due to an obsoletion, but Plastikon was helpful in re-evaluating their process and qualifying the new material in a timely manner.

Strengths: Injection Mold Plastics, Customer service, Reliable Components

Needs to improve: None

I have used Molex connectors for our electronic cables in capital equipment. Quality has been excellent and consistent. They offer quick responses to our inquiries on selecting the most appropriate connector to meet our needs. We've had no issues with their connectors for several years. Albeit, I've only been exposed to simple components, but it is nice to have a reliable vendor who require only minimal management.

Strengths: Electronic connectors and cables, Customer service, Technical support

Needs to improve: Nothing to improve

Flextronics has supplied PCB boards for a medical device. The boards were of superior quality and reliable. We did not see any issues with the boards over the 2 years I was with the company. Prices were fair, but quality was why we went with them. They are prompt on their deliveries and their customer service was excellent. They are also an industry standard for electronic component so why not go with them?

Strengths: PCB, Electronics assembly, On-time deliveries, Customer service

Needs to improve: None

We have used Cryogenic Deburring system to remove burrs and flash for small machined plastic components. We have had issues with burrs on a small plastic component, trying microblasting and laborious manual deburring, but have found cryogenic deflashing the most effective to deburr the components. The technical support was excellent.
Highly recommend for components with difficult deburring geometries. Prices may be a bit negative but it is better than manual deburring methods.

Strengths: Quality deburring, Technical support, Turnaround time

Needs to improve: Price

I have used Adhesives Research adhesives on one a product in the past. Adhesives can be a very sensitive material during manufacturing and Adhesives Research has been very helpful in helping us determine the right storage and usage conditions to optimize the manufacturing processes. The adhesives provide acceptable bond strengths and had no issues with the adhesives and product output.

Strengths: Technical support, customer service, quality products

Needs to improve: None

We order plastic tubing from Creganna. Although quality is consistent, their customer service is not as responsive as other top quality vendors. Their quality system is also a little lacking and their supply chain does not seem reliable. Once they gave us very little warning to qualifying a new material because their supplier notified them the material was discontinued. However, the quality of the extruded tubings are excellent.

Strengths: Extruding tubing, Consistent quality

Needs to improve: Responsiveness, Supply chain

I have used Klein Tools for all sorts of crimpers, cutters, and electronic testing tools. They are durable and reliable. Prices are competitive and customer service was quick to respond to quote request and sending our order. Highly recommend alternative to similar suppliers like McMaster, Fluke, Techni-Tool, Grainger.

Strengths: Wide selection, customer service, lead time, website easy to navigate

Needs to improve: None

They had supplied injection molded components for medical devices I have worked on in the past. Component quality was consistent and did not have any issues for the 2 years I was there. The validation work was also quite thorough and could withstand any FDA audit. Granted we had a robust component, but their excellent quality system and quality products made it easy for us to manage their supply and had no headaches from a sustaining perspective. From validation of the molds to consistently sustainable products, I would highly recommend them.

Strengths: Great injection molding capabilities, Quality system, Customer/Technical support, Reliable

Needs to improve: None

They had provided our cables used in our capital equipment. They have a very knowledgeable staff who are quick to responding. Very helpful and their cable qualities were excellent. We did have one issue with a small defect in one of the lots but they were quick to work with us to resolve the issue.

Strengths: Technical support, Quality products, Responsiveness to inquiries

Needs to improve: None

They have supported contract manufacturing needs for a couple of products I have worked on. I did not
encounter any issues with their products. They were responsive to our inquiries on product shipment deadlines. They had good communication with our planning team to ensure quality products all the time.

Strengths: Quality Products, Reliable, Responsive customer service

Needs to improve: None

Great calibration services. They were expedient, reliable, and provided timely certificates. They provide onsite calibration services which helps in a bind. Calibrations can be one of those nuisances that surprise you last minute, so having a dependable source like Excalibur was important. All calibrations come with certificates of calibrations traceable to NIST standards, so maintaining compliance to the quality system was easy.

Strengths: On-site calibration service, Customer service, Certificate of Calibrations, Metrology

Needs to improve: None

They have provided a couple of the lathes I have used in the past. Great quality, ran smoothly. Ordering was simple and delivery of the equipment was very efficient and even helped us with installation instructions. Customer service was excellent and provided timely status updates on our order.

Strengths: Quality products, Customer service, Turnaround time

Needs to improve: None

We came across Doerksen from an R*D manager I have worked with. We were working on an ongoing issue with a problematic feature on one of our components and had DPP help us out. Through some development, they were able to resolve the issue when others couldn't, a true testament to their precision. Products were of high quality, reliable, and technical support was excellent. Would highly recommend them.

Strengths: Quality Custom Machined Components, Technical Support, Reliability, Turnaround time

Needs to improve: None