Recognizing the challenges faced by a growing number of medical device companies worldwide, Synecco is expanding its unique service offering across the U.S. market.
The development of complex mechanical delivery systems can be an arduous road with many pitfalls. Today more than ever, devices are being asked to complete complex tasks ranging from inserting implants to delivering specialized therapies into the human body. Whatever the purpose may be, delivery is always required in a controlled and precise manner. Synecco utilizes its vast experience in this area to forge a customer-focused service provision that is transforming the new product development pathways for numerous customers.
Synecco is a medical device design, development, and manufacturing company based in Ireland. What makes it unique is the full vertical integration of its services from initial idea to product supply. The Synecco design center is located in Galway, a global hub for the medical technology sector and home to eight of the world’s top ten med-tech companies.
“We are guiding our customers on a journey from concept to commercialization,” says Tony Doherty, CEO, Synecco. “Devices designed and made in Galway are saving lives all over the world, but a real uptake for our services is being experienced in the U.S., which has always been a global driver of innovation, research, and development.”
The real difference-maker in what Synecco offers is recognizing the vital importance of the human factor in device development. The Human Factors Engineering (HFE) team at Synecco is focused on understanding and optimizing how users interact with medical devices.
“We quickly realized that rising levels of mechanical complexity in devices needed to be met with rising levels of usability and human factors engineering,” said Ronan Benson, Human Factors Lead in Synecco. “We work to simplify these interfaces. Otherwise, we would have very complex devices that would be unusable for the average human.”
Synecco Human Factors specialists work hand-in-hand with mechanical engineers. Traditional mechanical engineering has always been a mainstay for the medical device industry. However, Synecco has been taking this to the next level with its advanced engineering team focusing on methodologies to maximize control and precision for delivery systems, all under the direction of sound Human Factors guidance.
“Our advanced engineering teams grapple daily with contradictions like how to reduce the force felt by a user during a delivery sequence that requires very high forces, this is achieved through techniques like specialist screw thread design, research on optimal material combinations and simulation tools such as FEA.,” says Mark Costello, Head of Design in Synecco. “But engineering is always serving a specific usability-driven need, producing precision-engineered devices isn’t enough, even well-engineered systems will quickly become obsolete if users cannot engage with them comfortably and intuitively.”
The key to all this success is in the proprietary product development process within Synecco.
“We create a rigorous development process that accounts for every and all possible usability risks and failure modes that may occur, that puts any device through its paces long before it ever gets close to a real patient, we are trying to catch any potential use errors before they occur in the real world,” said Benson. “Once these potential use errors have been identified, we engage a world-class team that can then mitigate or eliminate these risks.”
Preventing errors is a fundamental motivating driver for the team.
“It is estimated that 250,000 Americans die every year from preventable medical errors. It’s an astonishing amount of lives lost to what are preventable errors, added Benson. “Worst of all is when a product gets to market with a fundamental issue around usability, ease of use, or the human factor, this can be devastating to businesses and can even sink entire companies. Preventing use error reduces the risk of companies seeing their investment in cutting edge therapies wasted due to simple, preventable user engagement issues.”
Synecco will continue to advance the cause of usability-driven advanced engineering across the globe because it has proven that this approach leads to better patient outcomes. For more information, please visit www.synecco.com.
To learn more about Irish MedTech innovators contact Jennie Lynch
