Application IDEAS.

Medical contract manufacturing business built upon unique blend: plastics know-how and pro football lineage

During 13 NFL seasons playing center for the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles, Alex Wojciechowicz Sr. saw plenty of bone-jarring action. Eighth man voted into the National Football Hall of Fame, he played at a time when sports medicine consisted of smelling salts on the sidelines. Ironically, his descendants today head a company that supplies doctors and hospitals with considerably more sophisticated tools.

Alto Development Corporation, Farmingdale, NJ, is a contract manufacturer of cardiovascular, ENT, and electrosurgical products. Led by Wojciechowicz's son and grandson who carry on the same competitive drive and spirit, they also operate its own wholly owned subsidiary, A&E Medical Corporation.

Design and plastics expertise are key to the group's success. Plastic components are manufactured on BOY injection molding machines in the 24- to 88-ton range. While most of the company's 10 machines are 50-ton Dipronic control horizontal models, there is a 24-ton vertical configuration used for insert molding of products such as the end-pieces of electrosurgical cords. All tooling consists of multi-cavity molds. Materials are application-dependent. A number of Alto's deceptively simple-looking plastic products are produced for critical applications, including:

* Raney Clip - The injection molded Raney clip is used to secure the sides of a scalp incision during neurosurgery. Because so much blood is concentrated in this region, tissue must be held back completely for a neurosurgeon to work. Designers successfully developed a device that achieves this objective with minimum pressure in such a way so that tissue damage does not occur.

* MYO Clip - The injected molded MYO clip is part of the enclosure end of a MYO wire and an electrical connector that attaches directly to pacing equipment following cardiac surgery. Produced using a static-resistant engineering plastic, the clip prevents an unintended charge produced by room static from traveling by wire to the patient's heart.

* Electrosurgical Pencils - Handcontrol electrosurgical pencils cut and cauterize tissue and are designed to fit all electrosurgery machines. Surgeons choose between rocker and pushbutton snap-action switches, allowing them to hear and feel switch engagement.

The company also provides an expansive selection of intramyocardial temporary pacing leads, as well as a host of other products marketed through a global sales force and over the Internet.