Fantasia Color And Special Effect Technology From Bayer Materialscience Introduces ISO-Compliant Colors For Medical Applications

Pittsburgh, PA - The Fantasia color and special effect technology experts at Bayer MaterialScience LLC (BMS) have developed new LEDA compounded color technology colors that can help designers break the beige and white barriers that have become the industry hallmark of medical applications. The "Rx Medical" line of LEDA colors and special effects for use with BMS' Makrolon polycarbonate and Bayblend PC/ABS resins brings a prism of industry-compliant color possibilities to the medical market.

FDA-modified ISO 10993-1 is the widely accepted standard for biocompatibility of materials that are used in the manufacture of medical devices. The family of Rx Medical LEDA colors was developed with this specification in mind. Makrolon polycarbonate resins containing the four new Rx Medical colors are ISO 10993-1 compliant, making them an innovative new option for the design of medical applications, such as drug delivery devices and components of surgical instruments, among others.

"The medical industry has been clamoring for a fresh palette of colors to use in medical applications, but designers have been hamstrung by the lack of ISO-compliant options," said John Skabardonis, Polycarbonates Marketing Manager for North America. "Our exceptional team of color experts at the BMS Color Competence and Design Center in Newark, Ohio, rose to the challenge with the development of the Rx Medical family of ISO-compliant colors for Makrolon resins to help designers bring the latest fashion colors to medical applications, or any application they feel the color speaks to."

The premiere Rx Medical colors are:

• Electro - A medium blue tempered with gray that manages to look very modern.
• First Aid - A whimsical take on beige, First Aid is a light brown dabbling in gray.
• Stat - A red/purple/gray hybrid with a muted personality that will immediately "be at home" in any medical facility.
• X-Ray - Tinged with a hint of gray, X-Ray is a modern take on the "standard" bleach-white color traditionally used in the medical industry and a radical departure from boring beige.

While the Rx Medical family of colors can be completely customized to achieve the unique vision for each customer's specific application, the understated mood and muted palette of the four premiere shades reflects the "graying" trend currently seen in fashion colors, according to Skabardonis.

"There is a strong trend emerging from the latest CMG (Color Marketing Group - www.colormarketing.org) palettes that indicates really bright colors are starting to diminish in importance compared with the more subdued hues that will be making their presence felt in 2009 and beyond. Color experts see this as a manifestation of the increased anxiety pervading modern society and our desire to return to basics, to a simpler time," he added.

The Rx Medical line of LEDA colors can be used in Bayblend or Makrolon medical-grade resins for any medical application that specifies materials compliant with the FDA-modified ISO 10993-1 standard.

"The medical industry is heavily regulated for safety, but this has also made it a challenge for our customers to find ISO-compliant colors for medical applications beyond the standard white, beige and blue," said Kevin Dunay, Market Segment Leader for Consumer and Medical Markets, BMS. "Bayer is a leader when it comes to plastics used in medical applications, and we are expanding on this leadership and increasing the versatility of our materials by offering our customers a wide range of innovative color choices for medical applications."

Color Your World with Fantasia Color and Special Effect Technologies Fantasia color technologies are the industry's most complete, one-stop solution for color and special effects. To meet customers' wide range of design, processing and cost parameters, there are several technologies we can employ:

• LEDA compounded color technology - Molded-in color for BMS resins
• AURA color infusion technology - Infuse parts with color after they are molded/formed
• MILENA color concentrate technology - Color for niche applications such as optical data storage media (CDs, DVDs, CD-Rs)

The Rx Medical family of Makrolon resins colors developed through LEDA compounded color technology is the latest addition to the many colors and special effects that can be viewed on the Bayer Fantasia color and special effect technologies Web site at www.BayerFantasia.com. In addition to being able to view the full line of Fantasia color and special effect technologies as 360° rotational forms on the site, you can also read the latest trend and application information in the eNewsletters found there. Sign up to receive the Fantasia eNewsletter on the site so you can stay up to the minute with the latest offerings and news from the BMS world of colors and special effects for engineered plastics, the world of Fantasia.

SOURCE: Bayer MaterialScience LLC