Worldwide Countries outside of the United States and Canada.
3D technology is helping optimize workstreams, shorten turn-around times, reduce costs and drive innovation
Merck’s 3D Technologies (3DT) organization is transforming the way we work in the discovery, development and commercialization of our medicines and vaccines for both human and animal health.
And, just as virtual reality, augmented reality and artificial intelligence are rapidly gaining in popularity, 3D printing has captured the attention of teams across our company who are using 3DT products in labs, manufacturing sites and even in outer space.
Also known as additive manufacturing, 3D printing is a method of creating a three-dimensional object, layer by layer, using CAD — computer-aided design — software. It differs from traditional manufacturing in which a final design is cut from a larger block of material. As a result, 3D printing creates less material waste and allows for greater design freedom.
“This transformative technology has continued to grow in both its capabilities and impact,” said Marc Durante, director of 3DT. “It’s truly evolving to what is perhaps one of the biggest advantages in the race for innovation across life sciences and beyond.”
3DT’s team of engineers and inventors provide enterprise engineering, design and fabrication capabilities which also leverage traditional technologies like injection molding, machining, thermal forming, casting, and water jet & laser cutting. This hybrid approach enables 3DT to efficiently address unique business challenges, from producing hard-to-find manufacturing parts or prototyping tissues and cells for novel test studies to regularly transforming napkin-sketched ideas into workable designs.
“Everyone who comes to our labs for the first time is genuinely shocked at all that’s possible with our suite of 3DT capabilities at their disposal. By the time they’ve completed their first project with us, their mindset around 3D printing is forever changed,” said Durante.
In fact, Durante and his team custom-designed the hardware used in a recent Merck Research Laboratories experiment that blasted off to the International Space Station. The 3D-printed device, which has received praise for its ease of use, was designed to utilize relatively inexpensive syringes for a range of experiments, opening the opportunity for other researchers who are investigating activating chemical reactions in space.
“We’re quickly becoming the frontline for custom solutions throughout the entire company,” said Durante.
3DT is a hotbed for out-of-the-box solutions and game-changing innovation with six to seven new requests per day — most of which are completely new inventions – and almost 3,500 3D projects completed (a number that continues to double every year), several patents and four labs worldwide (New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ireland, Singapore) with a fifth in the works (Latin America).
Some examples of the team’s work include:
3DT designed and printed custom grips and staging blocks to interface with a robotic arm to fill capsules used in early phase clinical trials. This resulted in cost savings and improvement in both turnaround time and employee safety.
3DT created nasal casts to study inhaled drug deposition patterns. The anatomically correct models allowed for more efficient laboratory testing with higher accuracy and precision and improved turnaround time on formulation decisions.
The expansion of salmon and trout farming in Europe, Canada and Chile has been accompanied by increasing infestations of sea lice among salmon. 3DT printed housing for two biomass cameras and sea lice counting units that could stand up to the pressures and temperatures of frigid 40-meter-plus deep Artic Ocean waters.
Merck’s award-winning 3DT has proven to be a center of excellence within our company and is also helping set new standards across the entire life sciences industry. Looking ahead, the momentum is sure to continue.
“We’d love to get to a point where colleagues across our company feel the freedom to be their own inventor and look to 3DT from the outset to bring about the art of the possible. In the end, we’re all working toward the same goal: bringing forward our medicines and vaccines to those who need them as quickly as possible,” said Durante.
Merck’s Q2 2022 earnings report
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It all comes back to saving and improving lives
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This news release of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, N.J., USA (the “company”) includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of the company’s management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. There can be no guarantees with respect to pipeline candidates that the candidates will receive the necessary regulatory approvals or that they will prove to be commercially successful. If underlying assumptions prove inaccurate or risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results may differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. Risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to, general industry conditions and competition; general economic factors, including interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations; the impact of the recent global outbreak of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19); the impact of pharmaceutical industry regulation and health care legislation in the United States and internationally; global trends toward health care cost containment; technological advances, new products and patents attained by competitors; challenges inherent in new product development, including obtaining regulatory approval; the company’s ability to accurately predict future market conditions; manufacturing difficulties or delays; financial instability of international economies and sovereign risk; dependence on the effectiveness of the company’s patents and other protections for innovative products; and the exposure to litigation, including patent litigation, and/or regulatory actions. The company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found in the company’s 2021 Annual Report on Form 10-K and the company’s other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) available at the SEC’s Internet site (www.sec.gov). No Duty to Update The information contained in this website was current as of the date presented. The company assumes no duty to update the information to reflect subsequent developments. Consequently, the company will not update the information contained in the website and investors should not rely upon the information as current or accurate after the presentation date.
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