Solvay’s Ixef PARA chosen by Bastos Viegas as an alternative to stainless steel

Bastos Viegas has announced it will extend its product line to include up to 100 SUIs that replace stainless steel instruments, all to be moulded using Solvay’s Ixef PARA biocompatible resins.

The existing array of Zillion Black single-use instruments (SUIs) are moulded from a high-stiffness, medical-grade Ixef GS-1022 GY51 gamma-stabilised polyarylamide (PARA) resin and includes curettes, a wide variety of forceps, needle holders, and skin staple removers.

Ixef PARA offers a highly aesthetic surface finish and this high-performance polyamide can withstand high-energy gamma radiation without significant change in appearance and physical properties.

The European-made Zillion Black SUIs are manufactured under strict clean room conditions, sterilised in-house using ethylene oxide (EtO), and are EU medical device CE Class IIa certified, under an EN ISO 13485-2016 registered quality system.

“Hospitals and healthcare practices are now, more than ever, in need of ready-to-use ambulatory and operating theatre instruments that offer optimal mechanical and ergonomic properties with minimum handling costs,” said Luis Guimarães, CEO atBastos Viegas.

“Solvay’s Ixef PARA provides rigidity, dimensional stability and metal-like strength, which are essential to the performance of our Zillion Black single-use instruments.”

Jeff Hrivnak, Global Business Manager for Healthcare at Solvay’s Specialty Polymers global business unit, said: “The on-going collaboration between Solvay and Bastos Viegas demonstrates the reliability, product development, and technical and regulatory support that medical device manufacturers expect from their partners.”