RUA Life Sciences Plc
The RUA Life Sciences group was created in April 2020 when AorTech International plc acquired RUA Medical Devices Ltd to create a fully formed medical device business. RUA Life Sciences is the holding company of the group trading through four businesses all exploiting the group’s polymer technology. Our vision is to improve the lives of millions of patients by improving and enabling medical devices with Elast-Eon, the worlds leading long term implantable polyurethane. Whether it is licensing Elast-EonTM, manufacturing a device or component or developing next generation medical devices, a RUA Life Sciences business is pursuing our vision. RUA Structural Heart has the opportunity to transform the global treatment of heart disease by delivering a synthetic heart valve that will be durable, so reducing the need for future replacement, and should not require lifelong drug treatment.
Company details
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- Business Type:
- Manufacturer
- Industry Type:
- Medical Equipment
- Market Focus:
- Globally (various continents)
- Year Founded:
- 2020
This company also provides solutions for other industrial applications.
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About us
End to end contract developer and manufacturer of medical devices
RUA Medical was founded by the Group’s CEO, David Richmond as a full-service medical device developer and manufacturer based in Prestwick and Irvine, Ayrshire.
It provides sub-contract manufacturing, assembly, packing and services to the medical device sector from its Class 7 and 8 cleanroom suites. It is an expert in the development and introduction of processes with valid and demonstrable quality control methodologies.
RUA Medical holds ISO 13485:2016 certification and occupies two FDA registered facilities. It works with a number of businesses in the commercial application of implantable fabrics. RUA Medical has invested for future growth through people, property and processes and has 26 staff members.
RUA Biomaterials
RUA Biomaterials is the depository of the Intellectual Property and licensing rights to a range of biostable, implantable polymers, including Elast-Eon and ECSil the world’s leading long-term implantable co-polymers, now manufactured on their behalf by Biomerics LLC in Utah, USA.
With well over seven million long term implants and fourteen years of successful clinical use, these polymers are being developed and used in cardiology and urological applications, including pacing leads, cardiac cannulae and stent devices. Devices manufactured from RUA Biomaterials polymers have numerous US FDA PMA approvals, 510k’s, CE Marks, Australian TGA and Japanese Ministry of Health approvals as well as FDA material master files.
RUA Biomaterials technologies have been designed to improve the performance and reliability of existing medical devices and provide medical device designers with advantages and design options that were not available prior to the commercialization of our high performance polymer technologies.
Our business model is based on licensing our polymer technology to medical device companies. We then work as a partner with the device company to assist with their development programs resulting in a cost effective and rapid move to device registration and revenues.
As part of this model, RUA Biomaterials has sub-contracted manufacturing to Biomerics who supplies polymers and can also manufacture components for the partner.
Our sister company RUA Medical is becoming an Elast-Eon Academy and can assist in developing manufacturing techniques and can also manufacture devices and components.
With well over seven million implants and 14 years of successful clinical use, RUA Biomaterials polymers are being developed and used in cardiology and urological applications, including pacing leads, cardiac cannulae, stents and implantable sensor technology. Devices manufactured from RUAs polymers have numerous US FDA PMA approvals, 510k’s, CE Marks, Australian TGA and Japanese Ministry of Health approvals.
Elast-Eon and ECSil’s biostability is comparable to silicone while exhibiting excellent mechanical, blood contacting and flex-fatigue properties. These polymers can be processed using conventional thermoplastic extrusion and moulding techniques. A range of materials in a variety of application-specific formulations for use in medical devices and components are available.
The RUA team has worked with some of the worlds leading biomedical academics and medical professionals to understand the fundamental nature of its biomedical polymers.
This deeper level of understanding has allowed RUA Biomaterials to invent and launch superior biologically stable polymers and processes which we believe will facilitate the creation of next generation devices.
RUA Vascular
Development of large bore polymer sealed grafts and soft tissue patches
RUA Vascular is the legal manufacturer and intellectual property holder of the Group’s cardiovascular and soft tissue patches and large bore vascular grafts.
In future, RUA Vascular will purchase the completed grafts and patches from RUA Medical on commercial terms and market them to distributors for onward sale to hospitals and OEM customers for inclusion in other devices. RUA Biomaterials will grant RUA Vascular an exclusive licence to incorporate the polymer material into the patches and grafts retaining exclusivity in this field and generating further licence income for RUA Biomaterials.
The currently available technology for soft tissue patches and large bore grafts comprises either animal tissue or textile (PTFE) material. Each material is compromised by either suffering from calcification or subject to tissue ingrowth leading to adhesion. Elast-EonTM based products will avoid these problems and address a market that is suffering a lack of supply of animal sourced products.
The Company has identified device categories that currently rely on abattoir-sourced animal by-products. Replacing animal tissue with Elast-EonTM will eliminate animal by-product sourcing risk and improve product sterilisation options and allow end-to-end control over the supply chain.
RUA Structural Heart
Development of tri leaflet polymeric heart valves
RUA Structural Heart holds the intellectual property relating to the Company’s synthetic heart valve technology and through an exclusive licence with RUA Biomaterials has exclusive rights to Elast-Eon™ for the formation of heart valve leaflets.
RUA Structural Heart has partnered with RUA Medical to manufacture the synthetic heart valve utilising a novel manufacturing process and valve design, the IP of which will reside in RUA Structural Heart.
RUA Structural Heart has the opportunity to transform the global treatment of heart disease by delivering a synthetic heart valve that will be durable, so reducing the need for future replacement, and should not require lifelong drug treatment. As well as these clinical advantages, the manufacturing costs of a synthetic valve are expected to be considerably less than those of current valve technology making this a potentially disruptive advance in heart valve surgery.