Join Eyedea and Irish Medtech Skillnet for an interactive and insightful two-day workshop focused on the advanced world of catheter technologies, design, and production. Led by industry experts and enriched by insights from specialists across the globe, this workshop provides:
- Expert knowledge on tri-layer catheter construction, advanced materials, and post-production methods.
- A deep dive into process mechanics, design variations, and real-world applications to enhance your skills.
- An opportunity to address emerging trends current challenges while preparing your team for future projects.
- Hands-on experience with the latest in medical device technology.
- Opportunities to network with peers and leading professionals in the field.
Background/experience: This workshop was created to advance and support engineers with 30+ years of experience. However, it was designed to be delivered to everyone, including non-technical staff such as sales teams, chemists, CEOs, investors, clinicians, and students. Take this chance to elevate your expertise, connect with like-minded professionals, and shape the future of catheter development.
Duration: 2 days / 8 hours per day. 4 x 1.5-hour chapters per day (timelines adjusted based on proposed start time).
Content includes
Day 1 — Core Catheter Architecture & Materials Science
Chapter 1: Introduction to Catheter Technologies
Entering the engineering foundations of catheter-based medical devices
Objective
Establish a shared technical baseline for catheter design, enabling participants to understand how historical evolution, clinical application, and engineering constraints shape modern devices.
Key topics covered
• Historical evolution of catheter technologies and clinical drivers
• Core catheter categories, device types, and clinical use cases
• Application-specific design pathways (cardiac, neurovascular, peripheral, structural, EP, etc.)
• Catheter nomenclature and industry-standard terminology
• Fundamental design requirements (performance, safety, manufacturability, regulatory constraints)
Learning outcome: Participants gain a common technical language and conceptual framework that underpins all subsequent design, material, and process decisions throughout the workshop.
Chapter 2: Liners and Mandrels
The internal foundation of catheter performance
Objective
Explain the role of liners and mandrels as the primary internal structural and functional elements of catheter systems.
Key topics covered
• Functional purpose of liners in catheter systems (lubricity, sealing, compatibility)
• When and why liners are required versus liner-less constructions
• Device-specific drivers influencing liner and mandrel selection
• Common liner and mandrel materials and their mechanical properties
• Industry-preferred solutions and the technical reasons behind them
• Alternative liner and mandrel options and their trade-offs
Learning outcome: Participants understand how early internal component decisions fundamentally constrain or enable downstream reinforcement, lamination, and performance tuning.
Chapter 3: Reinforcement Technologies
The structural backbone of catheter performance
Objective
Provide a deep technical understanding of reinforcement strategies and their dominant influence on catheter behaviour.
Key topics covered
• Detailed exploration of braiding, coiling, and laser-cut reinforcement patterns
• Methods, materials, and manufacturing techniques for each reinforcement type
• How reinforcement architecture controls torque, pushability, kink resistance, and
flexibility profiles
• Adjustment strategies for tuning catheter performance variables
• Downstream impacts of reinforcement selection on packaging, handling, and device
robustness
Learning outcome: Participants gain the ability to intentionally design and adjust catheter mechanical performance rather than relying on trial-and-error iteration.
Chapter 4: Outer Polymer Layers
Creating the external interface and protective structure
Objective
Examine the outer polymer jacket as a critical interface between the device, anatomy, and clinical workflow.
Key topics covered
• Industry-standard and emerging polymers used for outer catheter jackets
• Polymer–polymer interactions and bonding considerations
• Lamination process options and process-variable control
• Traditional and advanced heat-shrink technologies used in catheter construction
• Sterilization pathways (EtO, gamma, e-beam, etc.)
• Material compatibility with sterilization methods and resulting effects on catheter
performance
Learning outcome: Participants understand how material and process choices at this stage directly affect device durability, biocompatibility, regulatory viability, and clinical usability.
Day 2 — Design Integration & Practical Application
Chapter 5: Catheter Design & Manufacturing Strategies
From concept to scalable production
Objective
Demonstrate how catheter devices are designed and manufactured, alongside how they are adapted across device types, quantities, and manufacturing scales.
Key topics covered
• Analysis of 12 distinct catheter and sheath architectures
• Manufacturing pathways for low-volume prototyping through high-volume production
• 70+ post processing technologies and techniques
• Process selection based on complexity, tolerances, and cost
• Device categories explored include:
- Long term implantable devices
- Introducers and guiding sheaths
- Articulation and steering devices
- Ablation and electrophysiology (EP) devices
- Endoscopic and scope-based systems
- Implant delivery platforms
Learning outcome: Participants gain practical insight into how design intent, process capability, and production scale must be aligned to achieve commercially viable devices.
Chapter 6: Prototyping & Hands-On Build
Translating theory into physical devices
Objective
Reinforce theoretical learning through hands-on catheter construction.
Key activities
• Guided prototyping of an introducer sheath
• Application of liner, reinforcement, and lamination principles
• Real-time troubleshooting and performance evaluation
• Exposure to practical manufacturing constraints and techniques
Learning outcome: Participants leave with tangible prototyping experience, a deeper intuition for catheter construction, and the confidence to progress ideas from concept to functional device.
The workshop equips Medtech professionals of all backgrounds with a practical design framework, enabling more confident decision-making, improved device / product performance, and more efficient development cycles in regulated medical device environments.
Who should attend
R&D Engineers specialising in catheter devices.
- Representatives from companies supporting medical device engineering.
- Professionals looking to stay ahead in the dynamic field of medical technology.