Aliform Surgical Case Study: addressing critical supply chain pain points

Aliform Surgical’s search for a CNC supplier

Aliform is a US-Dutch surgical equipment company focused on developing safe and effective solutions for minimally invasive procedures in dermatology and aesthetic surgery for both patients and clinicians. Faced with lead times exceeding 6 weeks, Victor Suturin, the founder and CEO of Aliform, found the situation unacceptable and baffling. The only way to overcome the issue was to start his search for a reliable CNC supplier, no matter how long it would take.

Six weeks is expensive for a start-up — it’s not spoken about enough

When asked about a key supply chain pain point for start-ups, Victor highlighted the challenge of managing a prototyping project in real-time. He explained, “It could be a real time waste if you have to manage example a prototyping project, and you do not have capacity to do it internally fully. So you have to all of a sudden order 3D prints, order CNC, or injection moulding parts, if you really need that for prototyping, and it could take months.”

“By the time you wait for an email reply and come back from a holiday then wait for the bloody parts to arrive six weeks later. It’s really expensive for a startup. While finding a qualified manufacturer is a given, Victor raises important questions: ‘Do they have time for you? Will they be able to respond to your emails?’

Streamlining production: HLH Rapid helped us save weeks, if not months, of R&D time

A couple of months ago, Aliform encountered a problem of not being able to find CNC part suppliers. The criterion was to find a qualified CNC supplier, costs had to be reasonable, lead times shouldn’t be 8 to 9 weeks long, and they must be able to respond actively.

Although the search took time, it was worth it. Victor said, “I found it very helpful to engage with HLH in this regard, because it did help us to save a lot of time.” He further shared, “the fact that you (HLH) are available to discuss the challenges, to move things on quickly, and respond to challenges fast, it was a big time save for us, and we appreciate that,” said Victor.

Using HLH Rapid for more than just CNC production

Since Aliform’s first encounter and order with HLH Rapid in 2023, they have also expanded their collaboration, and have sourced sheet metal prototypes, SLA (stereolithography) 3D printed parts and metal 3D printed components from the company as well.

Victor has also guest on episode 7 of HLH Rapid’s podcast, Prototype and See. In the podcast, he further discuss supply chain pain points, third party reliance and management, respond quickly during the COVID crisis, and his experience on investing in a failed MedTech company. You can listen to the full episode below:

Find out how other companies are using HLH Rapid to speed up innovation. Looking to get your prototypes or low-volume production parts made with HLH? Get in touch with our team today through our site contact form.