• Published November 21st, 2024

Fort Wayne Metals Expands Nitinol Melting Capabilities

A manufacturer of custom precision materials for the medical device industry, Fort Wayne Metals began working with Nitinol in 1991. Since then, the American company has continued to develop its manufacturing capabilities around this shape memory alloy. It is available in custom-shaped wire, bar, and shape-set assemblies (from 0.0127 mm to 51 mm in diameter). Fort Wayne Metals stands out in particular for its offering of thin wires with very small diameters that are used in miniaturized and complex medical devices.

In 2012, the company's CEO, Scott Glaze, decided to take the next step in controlling the entire Nitinol processing journey: he opened a Nitinol melt facility. "Always looking to the future, we are continuously innovating to better serve our customers," he says. "As a fully integrated supplier, our goal is to enable our customers to develop their innovations, from Nitinol melt to custom finishing of products."

Since 2012, Fort Wayne Metals has sold more than 230 tons of its melted alloy in wire form, establishing itself as one of the world's leading suppliers of Nitinol to the medical device industry. And the production of its melted Nitinol for the medical sector is only growing. It doubled between 2022 and 2023 to account for 74% of all Nitinol products sold by the company.

Fort Wayne Metals is poised to further strengthen its position by expanding its melting capabilities. This year, the upgrade of its plasma arc melting furnace is expected to almost double production compared to 2023. In addition, the company is installing a second vacuum arc remelting (VAR) furnace that will be operational in early 2025, providing a new opportunity to double its production that could enable advantageous lead times.

Scott Glaze concludes, "The current and upcoming expansion of our melting capabilities demonstrates our long-term commitment to meeting the needs of our customers and becoming the largest, most reliable source of Nitinol for medical device manufacturers."

About Fort Wayne Metals
A leading manufacturer of precision materials used in life-improving medical devices, Fort Wayne Metals is dedicated to making Northeast Indiana and the world a better place. As committed as we are to supporting our customers’ medical technologies, our more than 1,700 employees are just as committed to contributing to community organizations and causes. Whether it’s providing the world with customized material solutions to support the medical device industry or championing efforts that lift up local communities, we are passionate about making lives better. Learn more at fwmetals.com