Vaccines are being rolled out across the globe. The process is occurring faster in some areas than others, sure, but the fact that a vaccine is being distributed at all means that the worst is behind us and that everything will go back to normal. Right?

In our 21st Annual Spending Survey, we’ve looked into who will be buying what and when. Despite the economic upset resulting from COVID-19, equipment budgets look to be steady, if not growing, for the next fiscal year.

Additive manufacturing has moved far beyond its prototyping roots. Today, additive for production applications is a growing area of interest.

The medical field is front and center right now. Whether it’s manufacturing new ventilators or analyzing virus particles, the importance of the medical industry has never been clearer.

In these strange times, every industry around the globe has been affected by the coronavirus. And manufacturing is no different.

Anyone involved in medical device manufacturing knows that their industry is highly regulated. Almost every medical device manufacturer or pharmaceutical supplier uses materials testing systems in their quality control and research laboratories or outsources their testing to approved third-party laboratories. 

Medical devices can present unique challenges for manufacturers. Consequences for malfunctioning equipment can be dire. Because of this, medical device manufacturers must work hard to ensure that their products never fail.

Medical device implants have become increasingly more complex over time as technology has progressed into providing a new way of construction by the means of 3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing.