Evonik now offers a broader range of RESOMER® PrintPowder polymers to enable the 3D printing of personalized implantable medical devices. The new powders are available globally for 3D printing through selective laser sintering (SLS).
Thanks to a broader range of customizable mechanical properties and degradation rates, the new powders can be used for more complex and tailored medical devices including diverse orthopedic, dental, or soft tissue applications. Evonik also offers comprehensive SLS application and printing service support for the new powder types.
“We are proud that these new powders will allow manufacturers to create personalized devices with complex internal designs that match a patient’s anatomy – this will open up new treatment options for patients,” said Thomas Riermeier, Head of Evonik’s Health Care business line.
Evonik is a market leader in medical grade powders for SLS printing, as well as offering bioresorbable filaments for FDM printing. The second generation of RESOMER® PrintPowder maximizes the choice for SLS printing of medical devices and widens application to more clinical indications. By expanding both its portfolio of GMP-grade bioresorbable polymers for SLS printing and its 3D printing services, Evonik’s Health Care business line is increasing its offering of bioresorbable materials for medical technology system solutions. The share of system solutions in the Nutrition & Care division, which is home to Evonik Health Care, is set to increase from 20 percent today to more than 50 percent by 2030.
The new polymer print powders build on the success of the first-generation free-flowing RESOMER® PrintPowder C 212 F. This powder, which was launched in 2020, is based on polycaprolactone and offers tight specifications and an optimized particle size distribution for SLS. In contrast, the new range of polymers, which are now available for sampling and customer evaluation, add polylactide or polydioxanone-based polymers into the portfolio for SLS printing.
3D printing is a versatile and precise way of producing medical implants. The development of additional materials for 3D printing allows health care providers and device manufacturers to bring new treatment options to the patients.
Evonik is a leading global solutions provider for innovative materials in the medical device and pharmaceutical markets. RESOMER®, now commercially available for more than 30 years, is the industry’s most comprehensive GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) portfolio of standard, custom and specialized bioresorbable polymers for use with implantable medical devices and pharmaceutical drug products.