- Additive manufacturing solutions at the Point of Care will foster innovation, enhance patient care
- Veterans Health Administration will collaborate with 3D Systems to establish FDA-compliant medical device manufacturing facilities using additive solutions
ROCK HILL, S.C., Nov. 05, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- 3D Systems (NYSE:DDD) and the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) have entered into a contract to employ additive manufacturing solutions to better serve Veterans with next-generation medical devices produced at the point of care. Through this collaboration, 3D Systems will support the Veterans Health Administration as they establish FDA-compliant manufacturing facilities within their hospitals for the production of additively manufactured medical devices. As a result, the VA network will streamline its supply chain and accelerate innovation to enhance personalized care for their patients – U.S. Veterans.
The VA will collaborate with 3D Systems’ healthcare additive manufacturing team to design medical devices and take them through FDA clearance. 3D Systems’ application experts will initially manage the regulatory paperwork and development of a quality management system at VHA facilities, and over time will train the VHA teams to take ownership of the process. The training will also include how to run the quality management system, and how to complete product submissions for regulatory clearance. The solution will include the company’s ProX® SLS 6100 3D printers and materials, as well as 3D Systems’ VSP®-related workflows and software.
“In a highly regulated environment like healthcare, the technology is only a small part of the solution,” said Ben Johnson, director of product development, healthcare, 3D Systems. “What becomes more critical to customer success is the partnership with a company that has knowledge and expertise operating in a regulated environment. Through this collaboration, 3D Systems will not only be installing 3D printers at the VHA sites, but we’ll also be helping them install a quality management system that includes the processes, documentation, and training required to be compliant as a medical device manufacturer.”
This initiative is an expansion of the collaboration formed between 3D Systems and the VHA to address supply chain issues in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time, the VA needed PPE – specifically face masks. As the final design for the Stop Gap face mask went into production, the VHA next turned to 3D Systems team to help develop a 3D-printed nasopharyngeal swab that could be printed on production level equipment.
“What began during the pandemic in response to a critical need has expanded to change the way healthcare is delivered,” said Menno Ellis, executive vice president, healthcare solutions, 3D Systems. “This is a one-of-a-kind collaboration between an additive manufacturing solutions provider and one of the world’s largest integrated health care systems to accelerate innovation in the medical device production and deployment arena. 3D Systems’ team of experts is collaborating with the VHA team both in our facilities and on-site at the VHA to enable on-site production of medical devices, and help improve the quality of care they deliver to this very important patient population.”
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements made in this release that are not statements of historical or current facts are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the company to be materially different from historical results or from any future results or projections expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. In many cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terms such as "believes," "belief," "expects," "may," "will," "estimates," "intends," "anticipates" or "plans" or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. Forward-looking statements are based upon management’s beliefs, assumptions, and current expectations and may include comments as to the company’s beliefs and expectations as to future events and trends affecting its business and are necessarily subject to uncertainties, many of which are outside the control of the company. The factors described under the headings "Forward-Looking Statements" and "Risk Factors" in the company’s periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as other factors, could cause actual results to differ materially from those reflected or predicted in forward-looking statements. Although management believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, forward-looking statements are not, and should not be relied upon as a guarantee of future performance or results, nor will they necessarily prove to be accurate indications of the times at which such performance or results will be achieved. The forward-looking statements included are made only as of the date of the statement. 3D Systems undertakes no obligation to update or review any forward-looking statements made by management or on its behalf, whether as a result of future developments, subsequent events or circumstances or otherwise.
About 3D Systems
More than 30 years ago, 3D Systems brought the innovation of 3D printing to the manufacturing industry. Today, as the leading Additive Manufacturing solutions partner, we bring innovation, performance, and reliability to every interaction - empowering our customers to create products and business models never before possible. Thanks to our unique offering of hardware, software, materials, and services, each application-specific solution is powered by the expertise of our application engineers who collaborate with customers to transform how they deliver their products and services. 3D Systems’ solutions address a variety of advanced applications in Healthcare and Industrial markets such as Medical and Dental, Aerospace & Defense, Automotive, and Durable Goods. More information on the company is available at
www.3dsystems.com.
Investor Contact:
investor.relations@3dsystems.com
Media Contact:
press@3dsystems.com
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/0b78f6a8-5d4d-4797-b1ff-0e10a8b79da8
3D Systems Point of Care
