Breaking the mould: Fixit Medical partners with WMG to deliver a safer, smarter medical device
Breaking the mould: Fixit Medical partners with WMG to deliver a safer, smarter medical device
Fixit Medical is transforming healthcare with innovative medical devices that prioritise patient safety, comfort, and usability.
The first device to feature their ground-breaking force dissipation mechanism is Cingo: a next-generation percutaneous drainage catheter securement device. To bring Cingo to life, Fixit Medical collaborated with experts at WMG to refine the design and optimise it for efficient, scalable manufacturing.
Challenge: From clinical insight to scalable design
Dr Robert Ward, Founder and CEO of Fixit Medical, has been a practising consultant in interventional radiology for the NHS for over 20 years. Through performing thousands of percutaneous drainage procedures, he saw firsthand the serious complications caused by catheter dislodgement, often due to the weight of the drainage bag or insufficient securement.
Fixit Medical set out to design an alternative: Cingo, featuring a unique force-dissipating mechanism to provide superior securement, greater patient comfort and ease of use. But turning this innovative concept into a manufacturable product presented major technical and commercial challenges.
Unlike traditional securement solutions, Cingo’s design was mechanically complex. It involved three interdependent components that needed to be precisely manufactured in medical-grade materials, while still being affordable enough to meet NHS pricing expectations.
No other products on the market combined this level of securement with patient usability, and replicating Cingo’s design using conventional manufacturing methods proved difficult.
With limited in-house manufacturing expertise, the Fixit Medical team needed help to:
- Ensure the complex CAD design could be translated into manufacturable components.
- Select the most appropriate materials and processes to meet medical-grade standards.
- Make informed decisions about tooling and supply chain to avoid costly mistakes.
"We were introduced to WMG by Innovate UK to solve the problem of affordable mouldability for three parts of the device.The team at WMG understood the problem and set about solving it with great efficiency and skill."
Paul Johnson, Managing Director at Fixit Medical.
Fixit Medical sought support from WMG’s SME Group, for expert guidance on how to make Cingo manufacturable at scale without compromising on performance or cost.
Solution: Removing risks from manufacturing the design
WMG’s SME Group began by analysing the Cingo design in detail, using plastic flow simulations to optimise the design for injection moulding: a process known for producing high-precision, cost-effective medical components at scale.
By using the real-life model, the team at WMG were able to assess how the product could be manufactured, ensuring the final product would meet Fixit Medical’s high standards for quality and functionality, whilst remaining cost-effective to produce.
WMG’s expertise on injection moulding and access to the best machinery at WMG, University of Warwick's state-of-the-art laboratory ensured Fixit Medical could get the support needed to manufacture Cingo, a process that otherwise could’ve been time-consuming and costly.
Led by Dr Tony Zeng, the team at WMG refined the existing CAD designs to ensure that Fixit Medical could manufacture a high-quality, fit-for-purpose medical device.
"We thoroughly enjoyed collaborating with Fixit Medical on product development. It was a rewarding experience, and we appreciate the opportunity to contribute to innovative solutions like Cingo, which enhances patient convenience and flexibility in the healthcare sector. We look forward to future collaborations on similar impactful projects."
Dr Tony Zeng, Technology Transfer Engineer, WMG.
Through the West Midlands Health Tech Innovation Accelerator, Fixit Medical was connected with injection moulding companies capable of manufacturing Cingo, using the medical-grade materials required for the device.
Impact: WMG’s expertise ensures Cingo is ready for manufacture
WMG’s expertise gave Fixit Medical the confidence to move forward with manufacturing. The project verified the manufacturability of Cingo, using injection moulding techniques and simulation testing.
This collaboration prevented Fixit Medical from investing tens of thousands of pounds on incorrect tooling, saving them significant amounts of time, resource and money, by getting the design right before entering full-scale production.
"WMG were very much on the ball with what we need to do. Their suggestions have been ground-breaking in developing the product further and will make Cingo compete on price with current market leaders."
Peter Solomon, Director at Fixit Medical.
From working with WMG, Fixit Medical has been able to successfully develop their market-leading, patient-friendly product with confidence. The company aims to release Cingo for patient use in mid-2026.
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