Ultrasonic cleaning is incredibly important for medical device components. This method uses ultrasound waves to agitate a cleaning solvent which washes away any particles. Advantages of ultrasonic cleaning include the ability to penetrate all parts of the component, including cracks, which is a shortcoming of autoclaving. 

For medical equipment, in addition to simple ultrasonic cleaning, there is usually a sterilizing solvent as well, so the device material must be corrosion resistant. Therefore, in addition to being water resistant, whichever material chosen for the component must be resistant to whatever solvent it will be cleaned in. Stainless steel 316 is the most common steel Hartford Technologies uses for medical applications due to its high resistance to corrosion and solvents.

Hartford Technologies recommends and utilizes a 5-stage ultrasonic cleaning system to remove extra particles from the manufacturing process. Four of these stages use different frequencies to target different sized particles. In addition, parts cleaning and packaging is performed in a Class 10,000 ISO7 cleanroom. The ultrasonic cleaner uses ultra-pure deionized water, which is produced in a closed loop system using reverse osmosis, activated carbon and mixed bed resin technologies. If the parts are small, we place them in a roto-tumbler with a lid which is then placed in the ultrasonic cleaner to ensure all of the parts are cleaned.

If you would like to learn more about our pins, our precision specialty balls, our customized bearing assemblies for medical devices, or any of the other products that we offer at Hartford Technologies, we invite you to contact us today.