Surface measurement expert Dyne Testing, an Intertronics brand, has released a new guide to help medical device manufacturers understand surface energy and tension, and their relationship to adhesion and coatings in MedTech. Why Surface Measurement Matters in Medical Device Manufacturing informs engineers and designers on methods to assess wettability, how surface treatment can clean and activate surfaces for better bonding, and how measurements techniques generate traceable, audit-ready data for process validation.
The white paper, written by Dyne Testing Sales Manager Alison Fox and Sales Specialist Conor Kelly, explains how surface properties directly impact wetting, the ability of a liquid to maintain contact with a solid surface. In practice, this measures how well a liquid will spread over a solid and dictates adhesion reliability and coating performance, as well as material options and device safety.
It covers practical measurement techniques including contact angle analysis and Dyne ink testing, how these techniques help evaluate coating functionality and uniformity, and how surface measurement data supports ISO 13485 and FDA 21 CFR 820 standards compliance.
“Wettability can be measured and understood,” said Alison Fox. “By quantifying contact angle, medical device designers and manufacturers can see how well adhesives, inks, or coatings will wet a surface. That knowledge helps them select and prepare materials to achieve consistent adhesion and coating performance.”
Conor Kelly added: “This becomes particularly relevant when using low-surface-energy polymers such as silicone, polyurethane, or PEBA. These materials can offer real advantages in flexibility and biocompatibility, but their surface properties make wetting and adhesion more difficult. Measuring and optimising surface energy helps overcome that challenge.”
Dyne Testing supplies instrumentation tools for surface measurement and cleanliness testing and analysis, including optical tensiometers for contact angle measurement and Dyne test inks and pens for rapid surface energy assessment.
To understand how surface measurement can improve adhesion reliability and support regulatory compliance in medical device manufacturing, the full white paper can be downloaded from the Dyne Testing website: https://dynetesting.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/25-8-Why-Surface-Measurement-Matters.pdf
