Solvay Advanced Polymers and Secant Medical® Announce Marketing Partnership in Biomedical Fabrics
New Supply Chain is Formed for Production of Implantable Fabrics Made of Solvay's Zeniva® PEEK
CHICAGO, IL - Solvay Advanced Polymers, LLC, a Solvay Specialty Polymers company and global supplier of high-performance polymers, along with Secant Medical®, LLC, a leading manufacturer of custom biomedical textile structures for medical devices, have formed a marketing partnership to promote the development and production of implantable biomedical fabric structures made of Zeniva® PEEK (polyetheretherketone) fiber.
The collaboration will result in the formation of a new supply chain that will provide medical OEMs with options to develop custom implantable fabrics made of Zeniva PEEK for therapeutic devices in orthopedics, cardiovascular, tissue engineering, neurology, and general surgery. Along with Solvay Advanced Polymers and Secant Medical, the agreement includes an undisclosed fiber manufacturer.
"This partnership further solidifies our position as a strategic material supplier in the healthcare industry," said Shawn Shorrock, global healthcare market manager for Solvay Advanced Polymers. "This new material solution is being offered in direct response to customer demands and meets their strict performance requirements."
"Our collaboration will expand Secant Medical's offering, broaden our ability to help clients to innovate their concepts, and further expand our leadership position in biomedical textiles engineering," said Karen West, vice president of advanced technologies for Secant Medical.
Secant Medical uses high-performance metallic and polymeric biomaterials in various combinations to manufacture a range of woven, knitted, and braided fabrics for implantable devices. Custom applications include high-strength sutures, bone anchoring devices, rotator cuff and arthroscopic joint repair, spinal stabilization and disc repair and replacement, textile-based heart valves and vascular grafts, and lightweight textile mesh structures for a variety of surgical procedures that require tissue reinforcement and wound support.
Solvay's Zeniva PEEK boasts a modulus very close to that of bone plus excellent biocompatibility, toughness, and fatigue resistance. Zeniva PEEK and the entire line of Solviva Biomaterials are manufactured in compliance with the relevant aspects of ISO 13485 and under the relevant aspects of current Good Manufacturing Practices. Solvay's biomaterial manufacturing processes are carefully validated and enhanced controls provide product traceability. In addition, all materials are tested in an accredited lab that is ISO 17025 compliant.
Solvay's experience as a key materials supplier in the healthcare field spans more than 20 years. The company is a leading manufacturer of high-performance plastics, offering a broad range of materials for healthcare instruments and medical devices.
About Secant Medical, LLC
Secant Medical, LLC is the leader in custom-developed biomedical textile structures for medical devices, helping customers meet challenges to bring device solutions to market quickly and effectively. Using constantly evolving high-performance metallic and polymeric biomaterials, the company designs the textile structures that client innovations require in developing the next generation of orthopedic, cardiovascular, tissue-engineered and neurological devices, and new general surgery resources. Secant Medical is a business unit of Prodesco, Inc., the leader in the design, development, and manufacture of engineered fabric structures for the medical, industrial, and aerospace industries since 1943. In 2008, Prodesco became part of Fenner PLC, a worldwide leader in reinforced polymer engineering headquartered in Yorkshire, England.
About Solvay Specialty Polymers
Solvay Specialty Polymers is comprised of the activities of the Solvay Advanced Polymers, Solvay Solexis and Solvay Padanaplast companies along with SolVin PVDC product lines. As the manufacturer of more products with more performance than any other polymer company in the world, Solvay Specialty Polymers supplies over 1500 products across 33 brands of high-performance polymers - fluoropolymers, fluoroelastomers, fluorinated fluids, semi-aromatic polyamides, sulfone polymers, aromatic ultra polymers, high-barrier polymers and cross-linked high-performance compounds - for use in Aerospace, Alternative Energy, Automotive, Healthcare, Membranes, Oil & Gas, Packaging, Plumbing, Semiconductors, Wire & Cable, and other markets. Learn more at www.solvayspecialtypolymers.com.
Solvay is an international industrial Group active in Chemistry. It offers a broad range of products and solutions that contribute to improving quality of life. The Group is headquartered in Brussels and its companies employ 17,000 people in over 40 countries. In 2010, its consolidated sales amounted to EUR 7.1 billion. Solvay is listed on the NYSE Euronext stock exchange in Brussels (NYSE Euronext: SOLB.BE - Bloomberg: SOLB.BB - Reuters: SOLBt.BR). Details are available at www.solvay.com.
Press Contact:
Joseph Grande
413.684.2463
solvayap.press@solvay.com
Joannie Anthony
Secant Medical, LLC
215-257-8680 x199
joannie.anthony@secantmedical.com
www.secantmedical.com
