About
Training Bridge, a startup based in Hudson, New York, aims to replace the expensive, petroleum-based silicones used in creating medical simulation models for emergency care training with a more affordable, plant-based alternative. After a decade in the medical simulation industry, Peter Marotta, a former registered nurse and US Navy nuclear engineering officer, founded Training Bridge in 2023.
The Challenge
Medical simulation models, ranging from small flesh-like wound cells to intravenous Practice Arms and full-body frames, are usually made with silicone-based thermoplastics or thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs). Silicone-based TPEs are often produced at large scales through injection molding, but this method presents challenges for manufacturing smaller quantities of medical simulation units. Besides the high costs that create barriers to market entry, Training Bridge aimed to address other issues with silicone-based TPEs, such as their lack of recyclability and difficulty in repair. Conversely, plant-based TPEs provide benefits in molding, quick customization, repairability, and recyclability.
What CEG did with the grant allowed us to take that first step in how to refine our strategy. The MEP grant helped us learn how to handle the material in a safe way and maximize economic impacts.
MEP’s Role
To support the startup’s use of plant-based TPEs in a medical simulation project, the Center for Economic Growth (CEG) helped Training Bridge secure a $20,000 grant from the Advanced Manufacturing Institute (AMI) Advanced Materials Technical Assistance Program. This grant, awarded by FuzeHub, involved CEG collaborating with AMGIO Consulting to provide Training Bridge with a technical solution for safely and cost-effectively dispensing TPE. The consultant also aimed to help Training Bridge improve their quoting process by providing more accurate lead time and cost projections.
AMGIO Consulting in Ballston Lake, New York, offers technical support in project management, planning, and systems engineering for launching manufacturing programs. The firm’s CEO is Alexander Giordano, a mechanical engineer and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute graduate who held several key roles at Precision Valve & Automation related to designing, producing, and selling industrial dispensing equipment.
Originally published on the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) website with the help of New York Manufacturing Extension Partnership (NY MEP)