Burr-Free Electrochemical Grinding – Orthopedic Wires & Pins | Tridex PGS-100
Challenge
Grinding Kirschner wires (K-wires) on a manual OD grinder presents significant challenges that directly impact production efficiency. Processing one wire at a time severely limits output, while lengthy changeovers between wire diameters and additional deburring operations compound production delays. This hinders throughput and increases overall manufacturing costs.
Process
Tridex developed an optimized solution using the Burr-Free Electrochemical Grinders SG-1645 and SG-2060, integrated with the Tridex PGS-100 ECG Point Grinding System to grind K-wire points in large batches. The electrochemical grinding (ECG) process delivers burr-free, low-force cutting for applications with tight tolerances and heat sensitivity, eliminating the need for secondary deburring and reducing overall production time.
The solution can grind virtually any point geometry, including trocars, drills, and multi-faceted points, on exotic and difficult-to-machine materials, with point-geometry changes requiring only a simple CNC program edit rather than mechanical adjustments. The PGS-100 mounts directly to the SG-1645 or SG-2060, enabling large-batch point grinding without the output limitations associated with manual OD grinding.
Contact an EngineerResults
In a test batch, 55 K-wires, 0.065-inch diameter, were precisely pointed with a cycle time of 2.2 seconds per wire. The PGS-100’s streamlined design enables quick changeovers between diameters averaging just 5 minutes. The ECG process significantly extends wheel life, reducing consumable costs over the system’s life.
The solution produces plain or threaded parts with consistent precision across virtually any point geometry, including trocars, drills, and multi-faceted points, on exotic and difficult-to-machine materials. The same process also applies to grinding Steinmann Pins, demonstrating its versatility across a range of orthopedic wire applications.
For K-wires requiring multiple profiles, MMT recommends the Glebar CAM.2 Microgrinder as a complementary solution.
Solution: Tridex PGS-100 Point Grinding System
The Tridex PGS-100 Burr-Free Electrochemical Point Grinding System is a fully programmable pointing and material-handling system that integrates easily with the Tridex SG-1645 or SG-2060 ECG Grinders.
Using ECG, the PGS-100 manufactures a wide variety of medical device points on tubing or solid wire, such as medical needles or K-wires, burr-free. The PGS-100 handles a wide range of workpieces and delivers high throughput for specialty pointing applications.
