Public Funding for Smith & Nephew UK Limited

Iliac crest autograft, the gold standard therapy for bone defects, frequently causes long term morbidity at the site where the bone is harvested. Aspiration is an alternative way to collect bone marrow (BM) which preserves the bone structure, reducing procedure severity & patient suffering. However, BM aspirates (BMA) are often diluted with peripheral blood potentially reducing the stem cell concentration below therapeutic levels. This applied research project provides an opportunity to develop a standalone, portable BMA concentrator (“BMAC”) based on innovative technology to remove contaminating blood from the BMA & concentrate the stem cells to levels above the therapeutic threshold for effective healing. Grant funding of £652K will be matched by internal funding to conduct the pivotal pre-clinical studies over 2 years. This novel transformational technology addresses a pressing healthcare need in terms of improved patient outcomes, & reduced health costs associated with the procedure & secondary interventions. The project will help promote a viable UK regenerative medicine therapy by fast-tracking the development of the BMAC device.

3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing (AM) has been heralded as a revolutionary technology which will impact on almost every aspect of manufacturing. It promises to be a technology which will change the manufacturing paradigm This is undoubtedly true, but before AM can be regarded as an established mass production technology it must metamorphose from a low volume, relatively inaccurate and highly expensive process to one which is capable fo competing with established manufacturing processes such as injection moulding and CNC machining. The purpose of this project is to enable AM to deliver on its promise of being an acceptable, stable, low cost manufacturing technology. The project will do this by delivering the largest capacity polymer sintering 3d printing machine yet built. The components produced by the machine will be solidified using a unique, ultra high speed optical scanning system which will yield speeds twenty times faster than those presently available. A highly stable temperature control environment will be developed which will enable the use of other polymers which can not presently be used in the polymer sintering process, including Polycarbonate, ABS PEEK and PEKK, The project will develop a technique to automatically clean and finish the 3d printed parts, prior to packaging. In order to ensure manufacturing accuracy, stability and reliability, each part will be automatically optically inspected prior to packing. The systems which will be used to do this uses algorithms which have only recently become available. The measurements provided by the automatic inspection will then be used to recalibrate the sintering machine prior to its next manufacturing operation. Following inspection, the parts will be automatically packed and combined with administrative information such as labels and delivery notes, in preparation to shipping. The system will be capable of providing customers with manufacturing information at each stage of the manufacturing process, so that the 3D printed parts can be more readily combined into existing manufacturing planning and quality systems. Upon successful conclusion, the project will demonstrate a methodology which, when applied to polymer sintering will yield an Additive Manufacturing processes capable of producing parts in a wide range of polymers, and to a cost and quality which is comparable with established processes such as injection moulding.

The primary objective of this 2 year collaborative research project is to develop the world’s first resorbable osteoplasty for minimally invasive intramedullary stabilisation of osteoporotic bone fractures, which is a growing international healthcare problem that contributes to the £2.3bn annual cost of fractures to the NHS. In the UK, the population over 65 will rise from 17.7% in 2014 to 23.2% by 2034 with osteoporosis affecting 20% of women over 70 and 40% over 80 (Source: International Osteoporosis Foundation). The consortium is led by a global medical device company (Smith and Nephew UK Ltd) collaborating with two UK-based SME’s, Lucideon UK Ltd, an independent global expert in materials testing, analysis and consultancy, and Arterius UK Ltd, who commercialize bioresorbable stents for the cardiovascular industry. The primary output of this technical feasibility study will be to develop a demonstrator for pre-clinical assessment in a sheep fracture model, and a platform technology, which is applicable in other areas of healthcare such as maxillofacial, reconstruction, spine and dental given its high level of innovation.

The objective of this 1 year feasibility study is to improve the performance of limb lengthening intramedullary prosthesis (LLN) for deformity correction & acquired trauma through plasma immersion ion implantation (PIII) of the internal components. It is hypothesized that PIII treatment will improve lubricity between these mating surfaces reducing the torque required to lengthen the nail & allowing for use in patients with larger limb diameter. PIII will require in-line control of critical process characteristics, e.g. implantation current, dose, choice of dopants, & surface characterisation tools to assess coating composition & coefficient of friction. The vertically integrated collaboration between a global medical device company (S&N), a specialist in PIII treatment (IBS), & an institute specializing in surface characterisation (NPL), are requesting £79k to address processing challenges relating to surface characterisation, process design & scale-up. The platform technology is applicable in other healthcare & industrial sectors given its high level of innovation, & the partners will commercialize the results through the consortium.

The primary objective of this collaborative research project is to develop a smart antimicrobial orthopaedic implant suitable for mass production in the established and emerging markets. The 3yr project is industry led by a global medical device company (Smith and Nephew) collaborating with a charitable NHS hospital trust and academia. The antimicrobial technology developed herein will help reduce the global threat of anti-microbial resistance and level of bioburden experienced in trauma by improving the aseptic conditions during surgery. The primary output of this project will be a demonstrator suitable for first in man/clinical trials, and a platform technology, which is applicable in other healthcare and industrial sectors given its high level of innovation..

To transform the current business model in the wound care market.

This applied research study provides an opportunity to develop the world’s first intelligent orthopedic External Fixator (Ex Fix) suitable for mass production using enabling technology, which addresses a pressing healthcare need in terms of improved patient outcomes through promoting the growth of stronger bone tissue, & reduced healthcare costs by decreasing treatment time. It also targets both key technical & economic barriers for both S&N & SMD potentially reducing the cost of implementation, while increasing the realizable potential of the technology. Although the project is aligned with more than one technology priority area, it predominantly involves the use of advanced wireless sensor/actuator technology, & computer aided solution (CAS) software for improved control of limb distraction, & monitoring & diagnosis of fracture healing through development of an automated External Fixator (Taylor Spatial Frame). The vertically integrated collaboration between S&N, SMD & UCL, are requesting £259k to support an 18 month study using 4.5FTE’s resources to address the key technical, and economic challenges. The platform technology is applicable in other industry sectors given its high level of innovation, however, the partners will initially focus on commercializing SmartFix through S&N sales channels given its anticipated value & impact in the marketplace. Collaboration with an SME will create supply chains & ensure exploitation of the platform sensor technology in a range of markets, which extends to custom sensor solutions, e.g. wireless thin film strain gauges for a variety of products.

The primary objective of this collaborative research project is to develop low cost, PEEK composite intramedullary (IM) nails for pre-clinical evaluation in an ovine tibial fracture model to determine whether an implant modulus of elasticity closer to bone would encourage faster healing through reduced stress shielding and increased micromotion. Although there are significant patient and surgeon advantages to using composite materials in terms of improved visualization and interpretation of the healing site, and better outcomes, the commercial motivation to switch to composites remains a critical practical issue to the project. This is due to higher manufacturing costs, and the risks associated with the introduction of a new technology into the market place at a cost premium. The project will address these commercial challenges by developing products with improved product performance at a competitive price that meets the market requirements for a composite nailing system through partnership with Invibio and General Composites Inc.

Awaiting Public Summary