Body shop: artificial organs - the medical revolution

In a small lab on the ninth floor in the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead, a technician is watching a vial of clear liquid spin. It's an inexpensive and unremarkable-looking liquid but it can be transformed into a human artery, vein, heart valve, tear duct or trachea. It might in the future be used to make human hearts, bladders, lungs, larynxes, noses, penises, breasts, ears - or most other parts of the human body you can think of. It is the liquid, if you like, of life.

This liquid was developed by Alex Seifalian, professor of nanotechnology and regenerative medicine at UCL Medical School. It is, to get technical, a nanocomposite polymer called - wait for it - polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane-poly (carbonate-urea) urethane, POSS-PCU for short. To get less technical, it is a liquid plastic that sets solid when it is heated up or cooled down and contains billions of tiny holes. Earlier this month it was used in an incredible bit of surgery, when a patient in Sweden had a section of his windpipe replaced with a piece built from his own stem cells and the professor's polymer.

This was the first time anyone in the world had received an organ made in a lab. It was a lifesaving operation and it marked the beginning of a new era in medical science. Using the technology, humans can start growing new and replacement body parts to order.

Professor Seifalian works in a small office a few yards from the lab. Aged 53, he has walnut skin and slightly bushy eyebrows. Long nights have given him the beginnings of bloodhound eyebags. But he is seldom far away from breaking into a slightly roguish laugh.

An expert and enthusiast, he has a clear vision of how the work of his small team could change the world. "A lot of organs in the future can be just made in the lab and transplanted," he says. "They will be available 'on-the-shelf'. People will be able to order them, add the patient's stem cell … and put it in the patient. If someone comes along here and says 'make us this', we can spend time and make it. Initially it is difficult to make but once we've made one we can make hundreds."

It sounds like the stuff of science fiction, a comparison he bears with equanimity. "We're not creating humans," he says. "We make human spare parts. We're not making the car, we make the engine, or a piece that has broken."

Seifalian, who began his career as a nuclear physicist, and his multidisciplinary team work at the point where physics and biology, surgery and science, collide. For some time they have made smaller synthetic bits for bodies, such as arteries and tear ducts.

The "spare part" that took Seifalian to the fore of the scientific world this month was a 36-year-old Eritrean man's trachea. Seifalian and his team were given just two weeks by a Swedish team to build him a new one and save the man's life.
It was an incredibly exciting time. "We were working day and night in the lab," says Seifalian. "I live across the road and I was going home to sleep just a few hours a night. My PhD student was sleeping here. My post-doc was here all the time, making the polymer."

Their work was so effective that Seifalian says he now has six more tracheas on order. It is not only the lifesaving aspects of his polymer that are thrilling. There are plenty of cosmetic surgeons, I suggest, who would love to be able to offer their patients new body parts.

Indeed there are. Seifalian says he has just been to a meeting where he has been discussing the possibility of using his polymer for breast reconstructions. For post-cancer mastectomy patients, he suggests, using his polymer would enable more effective breast reconstruction than the fat cells currently used.

But there's a cosmetic purpose, too. The professor delves into a desk drawer and pulls out two breast implants. Both are full of silicone but one is encased in his polymer, the other in the regular material used. He squeezes them, to demonstrate how much stronger his version is - virtually impossible to burst inside an augmented breast.
Is there anything he can't envisage making? "A brain I cannot make," he says. "And the liver is a complex organ, so we won't be able to make that. But the heart is possible. Not tomorrow, but maybe in three years' time."

Seifalian's polymer is incredibly cheap to produce (for around £50 he can make 500ml - enough to make two tracheas) and the possibilities for its use seem endless. It must be an extraordinary feeling, I say. He seems tongue-tied. "It's an amazing feeling … to do something … as a scientist and an academic …" He tails off. But not for long.

Objet demonstrates ready-to-use 3D printing

There's little doubt now that the world is on the cusp of a 3D printing revolution, but the technology has always been held back by its scale: while small objects are easy to create out of lightweight materials, usable large-scale creations are more difficult.

Objet, a company founded back in 1998 to create commercial-scale 3D printing systems, believes that it may be pushing that barrier with its latest creation: an entirely 3D printed folding chair, capable of supporting up to 100 kilograms.

The 48cm creation has been created out of the company's ABS-Like Digital Material, a 3D printing medium which it claims has similar stability, thermal resistance, and toughness to traditional ABS-grade engineering plastics. As a result, the finished product is able to easily support the weight of a single person.

It's a far cry from the early days of 3D printing, where objects were created out of wax, soft plastic, or starch and were usable only as a rough approximation of a finished product or as the basis for a mould to be used in more traditional manufacturing systems.

"Whether skateboards or folding stools, the prototypes that come out of Objet Connex 3D printers look like the real thing and also perform like the real thing," crowed Objet's vice president Gilad Gans. "Not only can this stool carry the weight of a person, but it was actually printed in the fold-up position in a single print job and then opened-up upon removal from the printer to be used."


While Objet's clever materials and high-resolution printers are well out of the reach of the average consumer for now, it's representative of the technology that will one day be found in every office and - possibly - in every home: a system for the creation of usable, customised products that can be transferred to the end user digitally rather than physically.

‘Move me out’ pleads tenant living with black mould

A Honiton council tenant says he would rather be moved than have work to remedy black mould carried out while he remains in his flat.

Paul Crewe, 47, of Custance House, says a ceiling will have to be replaced and that he fears asbestos will be disturbed during the works.

The mobile caretaker for a local authority has been fighting a losing battle with the mould and last week told The Herald he has had enough.

“I had a back operation a couple of weeks ago and I’m struggling with the stairs to my top floor flat. It would make more sense for me to be moved and the work carried out while the flat is empty,” he said.

The district council is inviting him to discuss a possible move to a ground floor property.

Mould became a nightmare for Mr Crewe around four years ago.

“It has got worse since plastic window frames were installed,” he said.

“I have got to leave my windows open - even in the winter.

“I’m not going to do any more to the flat, because it is money down the drain.”

Council officials were shown around the flat by Mr Crewe’s aunty while he was in hospital.

“The ceiling has to come down, not be painted over,” he said. “The council has agreed the work has to be done, but they want me to stay in the flat while it is carried out.

“I am worried asbestos will be disturbed. It is a small, one bedroom flat and they want me to move into one room.

“I am struggling with the stairs and I have sent the council a letter from my doctor saying the flat is no longer suitable for my needs.”

A spokesman for East Devon District Council said: “This tenant has been living in the flat since 1998 and we have always resolved any issues that have cropped up over that period.

“More recently, we have been looking into concerns about mould and dampness.

“An officer attended the flat on July 13 and arranged for repairs to an extractor fan.

“He also agreed to have the bathroom ceiling renewed and to carry out some insulation work on the upper walls. These works were to have been carried out while the tenant was in hospital, but were put on hold when a relative advised that mobility problems might prevent the tenant moving back into the flat.”

The spokesman added: “Work on the loft has been done, as this does not need access from the flat itself.

“The remainder of the works can be done pretty soon, but we would need to work round the tenant.

“Most of the mould is caused by condensation and there are some measures the tenant can take himself to improve the situation.

“We are waiting to hear from the tenant’s relative so that we can resume and complete the works.

“If there is an issue about the tenant wishing to move to a ground-floor flat, he would need to discuss this with us so we can assess his needs and see if alternative accommodation might be available.”

The Midweek Herald was shown around Mr Crewe’s flat on Thursday last week and noted mould throughout the property, particularly in the bathroom and lounge.

Spartanburg County Council to meet today to discuss incentives for BMW suppliers

Council will consider adopting a resolution and giving first reading to an ordinance that would enter the county into a fee-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement with Eaton Corp. The Cleveland-based manufacturer is looking to add 120,000 square feet to its distribution facility in Duncan.

Eaton's current facility is 180,000 square feet, and it employs 115 workers.

The company's production plant in Clinton, Mich., produces air conditioning lines for Spartanburg-based BMW Manufacturing Co.

Before considering second reading of an agreement with Fehrer Automotive North America, council will hold a hearing to give the public the opportunity to comment.

The company has said it is not prepared to comment on the project, but council documents show the incentives are for a new facility that will be in a multi-county industrial park. The incentives include job-source revenue credits.

Council will hold another public hearing on authorization of an incentives agreement for DAA Draexlmaier Automotive of America, which said in June it will spend an additional $12 million beyond a $10 million investment announced earlier to expand its U.S. headquarters plant in Duncan and create 50 jobs during the next five years.

The company produces premium interior and plastic injection molding components for BMW, General Motors and Volkswagen.

BMW: Carbon fiber in 2013

BMW plans to begin high-volume production of carbon fiber parts in two years, making it a strong contender to be the first automaker to move beyond limited-edition use of the exotic material.

But Daimler, which has taken steps aimed at making carbon fiber parts in 2012, is among the automakers racing toward the same goal.

In 2013, BMW will start building the i3 electric car, a vehicle that features a passenger cell--the protective shell around the passenger compartment that ensures the integrity of the vehicle in a crash--made of plastic reinforced with carbon fiber. BMW will produce about 30,000 i3s a year, according to Automotive News Europe.

BMW declined to confirm likely production volume for the i3. But Joerg Pohlman, managing director of the joint venture that produces BMW's carbon fiber, said BMW can make tens of thousands of vehicles.

"We have developed a very flexible production plan," Pohlman said in a telephone interview. "We are prepared to manufacture many more cars if demand is higher than our conservative estimate."

If so, the i3 will be a major breakthrough: a carbon fiber-intensive vehicle produced in volume at a moderate price.

Cutting costs
In 2010, BMW formed a joint venture with SGL Group of Germany to produce carbon fiber reinforced plastics for electric cars.

In the third quarter of this year, a factory in Moses Lake, Wash., will start producing carbon fiber thread, which will be shipped to Germany for conversion into the fabric used to make parts.

To cut costs and allow mass production, the partners are working to perfect a process called resin transfer molding.

The carbon fiber fabric is placed in a mold, and resin is injected under high pressure and temperature. The process, which once took 20 minutes per part, now requires less than 10 minutes. Robots cut and handle the material and components, which previously were made by hand.

The robots will help BMW achieved big savings. A pound of carbon fiber now costs only a third as much as a pound used in the M3 CSL coupe's roof when the limited-edition car was introduced in the 2004 model year.

More automation
"For the M3, we could afford to have a few workers put the parts in the form," Pohlman said. "We were only making a few thousand a year. But now we'll be making tens of thousands of parts. So there is a whole lot more automation."

BMW is not the only automaker that plans to use carbon fiber. Last year Daimler announced plans to form a joint venture with Toray Industries, the world's largest producer of carbon fiber.

In January, Daimler said the partners will use carbon fiber and other lightweight materials to reduce the weight of a vehicle's body-in-white by 10 percent. Daimler also indicated the partners will produce components for cars to be launched in 2012. Daimler did not indicate which models would feature carbon fiber, but hinted it would use carbon fiber in the vehicle's passenger cell.

Fighting pollution, with Green Ganpati's blessings

Thousands of idols made from hazardous materials like Plaster of Paris, coated with chemical paints containing injurious substances like Mercury, Cadmium, Lead and Carbon will be immersed in the city's water bodies yet again this year, poisoning it irrevocably.

Amidst this bleak environmental scenario, a faint ray of hope can be discerned, shone by a group of enterprising young students. Last year, this zealous lot at the KPB Hinduja College at Charni Road joined forces to set the bar for eco-friendly worship, modelling their Ganpati idol with newspapers.

The unexpected success of their venture has not only won them accolades, but also a slew of orders for similar models this year.

Responding to this unprecedented windfall, the kids have formed a body, referring to themselves quite fittingly as 'Youth Unite'. This group comprises recent pass outs, as well as present students. Their first were none other than officials of the college management body, who placed orders for two idols.

The novel venture was the brainchild of the NSS section of the student body, who got together with the past club members to create a one-of-its-kind eco-friendly Ganpati idol for their college celebrations.

In course of the workshop, about 25 students were taught how to make Ganpati idols with materials that were easily biodegradable, such as used paper from their notebooks.

Akshay Pawar, who passed out from the college earlier this year, was a member of this student body with a conscience. "We are very happy with the success of our enterprise. Officials from the management were the first takers, asking us to make two Ganpati idols this year."

P Aditya, presently a third year student of the college said, "This Ganpati idol doesn't have the slightest trace of plastic. Apart from the two orders received from college officials, we have received more than three orders from others. We will only ask to be compensated for the building materials.

No making charges will be imposed. Some of our group members go to other colleges, and they have been creating awareness about these eco-friendly idols in their respective colleges.

We will start modeling our idols within ten days. We also await permission from the college authorities to impart our skills to students of other colleges."

Jayesh Patel, vice principal of KPB Hinduja College, said, "We were very impressed by the zeal that they displayed to protect the environment. We have decided to support them this year. We will encourage them to teach pupils at other colleges the skills they have acquired."

While showing around his factory

The company, based in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, plans to open the new facility late this year in the nearby city of Zhongshan, more than doubling its mold making capacity and adding 20 injection molding machines to broaden its business.

Revenues have increased in the aftermath of the 2008 recession in the United States, particularly from the auto components market as American companies look to hold down costs, said owner and President Michael Zhao, in a June 28 interview at the company’s factory in Shenzhen.

"The U.S. market is down but they need to save costs," he said. "They need to find resources in other countries."

New Star, which employs 120 in China, set up a U.S. sales office in 2007, in Bantam, Conn., and also has one in Denbighshire, the United Kingdom. It has agents in France and Brazil, and is looking for representatives in other countries, including Germany, Zhao said.

The investment in the new factory, sizable for a company of its size, suggests that for all the very real talk of rising costs in China, some companies are adapting.

For New Star, that has meant investing in its first German CNC machine, with triple the speed of the Taiwanese models it also uses, and finding ways for workers to be more efficient.

Wages are rising sharply, up 20 percent since 2008, with the company’s average mold maker salary at about 5,000 Chinese yuan ($773.50) a month, Zhao said.

But even with those costs, he estimated that the company’s final cost for molds is still 50 percent cheaper than typical North American molds.

As well, he said the strengthening Chinese yuan, which cost it some contracts a few years ago in its housewares and medical business, has proven to be manageable.

"The rising costs are not a serious problem," Zhao said. "We are trying to improve our staff quality and efficiency and shorten the lead times."

The company recently hired 30 students from local moldmaking colleges and is training them, and has tried, without success so far, to find moldmakers from the U.S. or the U.K. to come to China to conduct training.

"The biggest challenge is training workers," said Zhao, who founded New Star in 2001, after getting a college degree in moldmaking and working in the local industry for 10 years.

A job working as an export manager for one Chinese mold shop convinced him that China’s 2001 entry into the World Trade Organization would bring a lot more foreign companies looking to source molds.

Right now, 100 percent of New Star’s business is exported, with more than 90 percent of that to the U.S. and the U.K.

The company is trying to grow its business in China’s domestic market, including in the auto and medical sectors, either focusing on state-owned firms or foreign companies operating there, he said. There is some auto component manufacturing in Zhongshan.

As well, the company is broadening its business model. Last year it opened a subsidiary, Shenzhen Zhaojia Precision Mould Components Co., making mold parts like ejector pins and sleeves. That company employs 60.

The new Zhongshan factory, which will more than triple floor space to about 23,000 square meters, will also have 20 additional injection molding machines, to go with the nine it currently has.

The company wants to do more injection molding work and finished product assembly work, Zhao said.

While showing around his factory, located in an industrial area of Shenzhen that he said has about 100 other moldmaking factories, he pointed out an assembly project of a telecom device New Star was doing for the Internet phone provider Vonage.

The firm had 51.7 million Chinese yuan (US$8 million) in sales last year, and is projecting over 64.6 million Chinese yuan (US$10 million) this year, he said.

Greetings card gets plastic electronics

Cambridge-based plastic electronics firm PragmatIC has delivered a prototype greeting card to Hallmark subsidiary Tigerprint.

On a plastic substrate, the card's electronics are formed by imprint lithography - pressing sub-micron features with a physical mould - rather than printing.

The firm's imprinted sub-micron intellectual property for producing logic from a single layer of semiconductor (see diagram below) was invented by Professor Aimin Song at the University of Manchester.

It was acquired by PragmatIC last year from start-up Nano ePrint, which was attempting to make imprinted structured asics and is now working on 'zero-threshold' diodes for thermoelectric energy harvesting.

To the logic, PragmatIC has added higher current imprinted transistors for driving loads.

"The starting point are the planar devices of Nano ePrint. These have to be small for the field effect to work," PragmatIC CEO Scott White told Electronics Weekly. "They are very good for low power, but are not scalable for high current so we have broadened the technology with more traditional self-aligned devices."

No details of the self-aligned transistors were available because patenting is not complete.

Both logic and self-aligned transistors are defined at the same time with a single imprint step, then multiple processing steps follow to form the high current devices over the imprint, said White, who was also CEO at Nano ePrint.

The greetings card includes imprinted electronics on a small substrate, a printed battery and conventional surface-mount LEDs. "OLEDs on flex are not quite mature enough," said White.

These items are bonded to a card-size substrate, connected together with printed conductive ink interconnect, and built into the card.

"The card prototypes demonstrate create a flashing animation without materially increasing the thickness of the card, and without the complicated assembly required for greeting cards employing conventional electronics," said PragmatIC.

The £300,000 card project was supported by grant funding from The Northern Way, an initiative between the three northern UK Regional Development Agencies: Yorkshire Forward, Northwest Regional Development Agency and One NorthEast.

Separately, a tie-up between PragmatIC and Netherlands research lab Holst Centre has been established to develop imprinted electronics.

Holst Centre has expertise in amorphous oxide semiconductor devices, plus fabrication equipment.

"PragmatIC's device structures and high resolution imprint process naturally complement Holst Centre's existing expertise in materials and printed logic circuits," said Holst programme manger Gerwin Gelinck.