HYPOTUBES & PRECISION METAL TUBING
We bring specialized expertise in metal hypotubes, precision metal tubing, steerable catheter components, and specialty needle assemblies, which are critical components for advanced minimally invasive devices.
As a trusted partner to over 70 medical device OEMs globally, we ship more than 10 million hypotube, laser cut metal tube components & pull-wire assemblies annually, supporting everything from prototyping to high-volume production. Whether you're looking to enhance steerability, strength, or flexibility, our team is here to help you move from concept to market with confidence.
Freudenberg Medical also offers value-added manufacturing such as insert and over-molding, pad printing, and final assembly which are backed by global manufacturing in multiple continents, proven quality systems, and trusted OEM partnerships.
Trusted Partner for Hypotubes & Precision Metal Tubing
Freudenberg Medical’s hypotube Center of Excellence in Galway, Ireland, builds on over 20 years of proven quality and innovation for hypotube assemblies, laser cut metal tubes and pull-wire assemblies. With the addition of our facility in Yaita, Japan (formerly Fuji Seiko), we’ve expanded our capabilities in precision small-diameter metal tubing, enhancing our global reach and technical expertise. This increased vertical integration enables our customers to reduce supply chain risks, accelerate time-to-market, and ensure consistent, high-quality performance for even the most complex medical devices.
We support our customers with a truly global footprint. Discover our two facilities specialized in precision metals:
Engineered Metal Components for Critical Applications
Our team delivers a wide range of precision metal processing solutions for hypotubes, laser cut tubes & pull-wire assemblies to support complex medical devices across cardiovascular, peripheral vascular, neurovascular, endoscopy, electrophysiology and structural heart applications. Our capabilities include hypotube fabrication, centerless grinding, EDM, ECM, laser cutting and welding, and precision tip grinding for specialty needles, engineered for accuracy, consistency, and performance.
We offer advanced surface finishing such as passivation, electro-polishing, and bead blasting, as well as proprietary PTFE coating for optimal functionality and safety. Laser marking and ablation add traceability and design flexibility. For added integration and performance, we provide surface coating solutions and polymer over-jacketing.
Our Navigate® product development program supports rapid design iterations, prototyping, and design for manufacturability to accelerate innovation and speed time to market.
Navigate® Brochure
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Metal Solutions and Applications
Hypotubes
As a leading hypotube manufacturer, we deliver high-performance hypotube solutions designed for maximum pushability, kink resistance and torque response. Our custom laser-cutting patterns, core wire assemblies and material treatments ensure optimized hypotube performance, allowing for safe navigation through the most complex and tortuous human anatomy.
Precision Metal Tubing
Our precision metal tubing solutions—enhanced through our acquisition of Fuji Seiko—deliver industry‑leading quality for minimally invasive medical device applications. As a global leader in small‑diameter tubing, we provide unmatched consistency, tight tolerances, and superior metallurgy across stainless steel and high‑performance alloys. Our vertically integrated manufacturing and advanced metal‑processing expertise ensure reliable, high‑performance tubing for catheters, delivery systems, and other critical interventional devices. With expanded capabilities and faster lead times, we support OEMs seeking proven precision, exceptional performance, and a dependable metals supply chain.
Specialty Needles
We manufacture precision-ground specialty needles, in excess of 1 meter in length, for biopsy, access, and drug delivery in challenging endoscopy, structural heart and electrophysiology applications. We support these specialized product solutions through in-house secondary processes like centerless grinding and electro-polishing to ensure sharp, consistent performance and reliable puncture force.Our precision tubing solutions also supply raw metal tubing engineered specifically for precision stylets and cannulas.
Metal Shaft Assemblies
We specialize in complex metal shaft & hypotube assemblies that integrate multiple components into a single, high-performance unit. These hypotube or metal shaft assemblies - used in vascular and structural heart applications - are engineered to balance column strength for pushability with the flexibility needed for atraumatic navigation.
Pull Wire Assemblies
Essential for the functionality of steerable devices, our pull wire assemblies are manufactured to exacting tolerances. We focus on high tensile strength and minimal stretch to ensure precise control and responsive torqueability for the end-user, even in miniaturized device designs.
Steerable Hypotube Components
From distal assemblies to handle interfaces, our steerable components are designed to enable & enhance the performance of steerable catheters. By optimizing the interaction between the shaft and internal components, we provide superior kink resistance, flexibility and deflection accuracy for complex minimally invasive vascular and structural heart catheter designs.
Unique Product Solutions
We provide innovative solutions to optimize your hypotube design and associated development process.
Click on the tabs below to discover more:
E-Pro® Hypotubes
An advanced metallurgical hypotube solution offering superior kink resistance over traditional '304 stainless steel', making navigation through tortuous anatomies faster and safer.
In thin-walled tube applications, E-Pro's® high kink resistance allows for larger internal diameters thus delivering reduced deflation times leading to a better catheter device. This superior kink resistant E-Pro® hypotube from Freudenberg Medical makes navigation through tortuous anatomies safer.
E-Pro® Hypotube Technical Data
- Medical grade stainless steel hypotube
- Greater kink resistance without compromising pushability, trackability, torqueability
Enhanced kink resistance enables:
- Increase in inner diameter for better inflation/deflation time
- Thinner walls to maximise trackability
- Greater push and torque forces for better manoeuvrability
- More flexiblity improves ‘feel’ of hypotube
- Improved package set properties
E-Pro® Hypotube Benefits:
- High kink resistance reduces risk of failure
- Reduced inflation/deflation times
- Potential to reduce procedure time, improving patient safety
- Allows physicians to use higher forces to deliver solution
Rho-Coat™ coating solution
A PTFE-free coating material for hypotube-based catheters. It is applied using our state-of-the-art proprietary application technology – Cambus Coat™, an environmentally friendly coating technique.
Rho-Coat™ provides an ultra-smooth coating for optimum lubricity and easy insertion and removal of the catheter, hypotube or wire. Rho-Coat™ produces products with a finish similar in performance to a polymer jacket. Rho-Coat™ can be applied to hypotubes in the creation of coated catheter shafts deployed in cardiovascular and neurovascular applications.
Rho-Coat™ Benefits:
- Ultra-smooth
- High lubricity
- Conformal coating
- Excellent adhesion
- Tight tolerances
- PTFE & PFOA-free
Passes stringent biocompatibility testing in accordance with ISO standard 10993-1 for short-term contact of less than 24 hours with human body:
- Cytotoxicity
- Hemocompatibility: Direct & In-direct contact
Base Materials
Rho-Coat™ be applied to all major metal catheter shaft substrates including:
- Stainless Steel
- Other alloys on request
Technical specifications
| Tube/Wire Diameter Range | Coating Thickness | Coating Colours |
|---|---|---|
| OD: 0.012” ~ 0.080” or 0.30mm ~ 2.00mm | Average coating thickness of 0.0002” (0.005mm) per side is consistently achieved | Black |
| Typical Range: 0.0002” – 0.0009” (0.005mm to 0.023 mm) |
Mu-Coat™ Coating Solution
A high-performance PTFE-enhanced coating solution for hypotube based catheter shafts. Mμ-Coat™ is applied using Freudenberg Medical’s state-of-the-art proprietary application technology – Cambus Coat™ - an environmentally friendly coating technique.
When Mμ-Coat™ is cured on the substrate metal, it forms a lubricious and non-stick matrix which is ideal for coating hypotube-based products. Mμ-Coat™ is applied to catheter shaft solutions for cardiovascular and neurovascular device applications.
Mμ-Coat™ Benefits:
- Conformal coating
- Low coefficient of friction, improving hypotube trackability
- Excellent adhesion properties
- Tight tolerances
- PFOA-free
Passed stringent Biocompatibility Testing in accordance with ISO standard 10993-1 for short-term contact of less than 24 hours with human body:
- Cytotoxicity
- Hemocompatibility: Direct & In-direct contact
Base Materials
Mμ-Coat™ can be applied to all major metal catheter shaft substrates including:
- Stainless Steel
- Other alloys on request
Technical Specifications
| Tube/Wire Diameter Range | Coating Thickness | Coating Colours |
|---|---|---|
| OD: 0.012”~0.080” or 0.30mm~2.00mm | Average coating thickness of 0.0002” (0.005mm) per side is consistently achieved | Black |
| Typical Range: 0.0002”– 0.0009” (0.005 μm to 0.023 μm) | Blue | |
| Green on request |
Freudenberg Medical’s METALS Capabilities
Design &
Development
Product Development and Assembly
Value-Added Manufacturing
Injection Molding and Pad Printing
Laser-Based Enhancements
Laser Cutting, Laser Welding, Laser Marking/Ablation
Precision Metal
Processing
EDM & ECM, Grinding, Swaging
and other Fabrication processes
Surface Finishing
& Treatment
Passivation, Electro-Polishing, PTFE Coating and non-PTFE Cambus Coat™, Advanced Cleaning
