Student project

Eero Hulkkonen, Elena Lezhneva and Alina Selezneva

Are these Arcada students finding the recipe for your future hip joint implant?

Three enthusiastic students of Plastics Technology spent the summer in the plastics laboratory at Arcada University of Applied Sciences. Eero Hulkkonen, Elena Lezhneva and Alina Selezneva did part of their practical training doing research and testing of orthopedic implants. It all started with a course in entrepreneurship, in which the students teamed up to create a business idea. The course was about coming up with a business idea, doing market research and finally implementing the idea as far as possible. The business concepts were then presented to the public at an Arcada exhibition. One of the businesses presented was Luutech, a company that might be developing tomorrow’s hip joint implants. With the help and inspiration of the course teacher, Henry Ericsson, the project went on from the business idea of setting up the company to conducting research on existing problems and techniques.

Hip joint implants have a short lifespan
Students of Plastics Technology Eero and Elena and Alina, student of International Business, came up with the idea to develop the medical implants already found on the market today. With a constantly growing population of elderly, orthopedic implants is a growing field. The students decided to focus on hip joint implants. The hip joint implants on the market today only last about 6 years before they have to be replaced, which inspired the students to question why, and to ultimately find out what would be more durable materials for the purpose. The implants today are made of metal, plastics or ceramics. All of these materials wear and split with time. As foreign particles enter the body there is an increased risk of infection. – There is definitely a demand for research and money to be saved in the business. Imagine that there are 30 000 hip joint implant operations made per year - only in Finland, says Alina.

A long road to success
The road to results has been a long one. To get a mould, the students ended up chasing an implant at the crematorium in Helsinki. The implant then served as a model for a prototype (the process of making the prototype can be viewed on YouTube) for further tests. Alina, Elena and Eero were excited about the idea from the start. – During the course in entrepreneurship we were enthusiastic and naïve and really imagined starting our own business, says Elena. But along the way the trio learned what a slow and bureaucratic process they were dealing with. Alina, who has been contacting medical companies and partners of interest, knows all too well that not every company is eager to share research information. –And the material used in the industry is very expensive, Eero adds.  

Hard work pays off
But their persistent work paid off. Some partners are very interested in their research and see the potential in their work. – For the testing we have got great help from Aalto University School of Technology and we have had access to their testing facilities. Recently we got Biomet interested in our project, Elena says. A company called Tekona has donated material used in the industry for lab tests and Ceramtec has donated DVDs and educational magazines about the implant process.  –This has been an interesting and very independent learning process. Our teachers give us a great responsibility and a freedom to study what we are interested in, the students say. The interest in the project has been great among the students of Plastics Technology and International Business and new students would like to join in their research work. However they cannot take on new team members right now. – It has been a long process for us and the three of us work well as a team. But we are glad we can show other students what great things they can use their knowledge and skills for. And it’s a good sign for the future that the interest is there.

Student project

Are these Arcada students finding the recipe for your future hip joint implant?

Three enthusiastic students of Plastics Technology spent the summer in the plastics laboratory at Arcada University of Applied Sciences. Eero Hulkkonen, Elena Lezhneva and Alina Selezneva did part of their practical training doing research and testing of orthopedic implants. It all started with a course in entrepreneurship, in which the students teamed up to create a business idea. The course was about coming up with a business idea, doing market research and finally implementing the idea as far as possible. The business concepts were then presented to the public at an Arcada exhibition. One of the businesses presented was Luutech, a company that might be developing tomorrow’s hip joint implants. With the help and inspiration of the course teacher, Henry Ericsson, the project went on from the business idea of setting up the company to conducting research on existing problems and techniques.

Hip joint implants have a short lifespan
Students of Plastics Technology Eero and Elena and Alina, student of International Business, came up with the idea to develop the medical implants already found on the market today. With a constantly growing population of elderly, orthopedic implants is a growing field. The students decided to focus on hip joint implants. The hip joint implants on the market today only last about 6 years before they have to be replaced, which inspired the students to question why, and to ultimately find out what would be more durable materials for the purpose. The implants today are made of metal, plastics or ceramics. All of these materials wear and split with time. As foreign particles enter the body there is an increased risk of infection. – There is definitely a demand for research and money to be saved in the business. Imagine that there are 30 000 hip joint implant operations made per year - only in Finland, says Alina.

A long road to success
The road to results has been a long one. To get a mould, the students ended up chasing an implant at the crematorium in Helsinki. The implant then served as a model for a prototype (the process of making the prototype can be viewed on YouTube) for further tests. Alina, Elena and Eero were excited about the idea from the start. – During the course in entrepreneurship we were enthusiastic and naïve and really imagined starting our own business, says Elena. But along the way the trio learned what a slow and bureaucratic process they were dealing with. Alina, who has been contacting medical companies and partners of interest, knows all too well that not every company is eager to share research information. –And the material used in the industry is very expensive, Eero adds.  

Hard work pays off
But their persistent work paid off. Some partners are very interested in their research and see the potential in their work. – For the testing we have got great help from Aalto University School of Technology and we have had access to their testing facilities. Recently we got Biomet interested in our project, Elena says. A company called Tekona has donated material used in the industry for lab tests and Ceramtec has donated DVDs and educational magazines about the implant process.  –This has been an interesting and very independent learning process. Our teachers give us a great responsibility and a freedom to study what we are interested in, the students say. The interest in the project has been great among the students of Plastics Technology and International Business and new students would like to join in their research work. However they cannot take on new team members right now. – It has been a long process for us and the three of us work well as a team. But we are glad we can show other students what great things they can use their knowledge and skills for. And it’s a good sign for the future that the interest is there.