Enhancing well-being with Kraiburg TPE’s sustainable material solutions for medical devices
Kraiburg TPE, a global manufacturer of thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) compounds for various industries, offers material solutions that meet advanced medical technology standards for devices used in ostomy care, skin health, personal hygiene, and anti-snore applications for quality sleep.
Comfort and fit in ostomy care
Living with an ostomy bag often means managing daily discomfort, staying alert to leaks or skin irritation, and being constantly aware of the bag’s presence, especially in social or active situations. In other words, it is not easy. These are the kinds of challenges that manufacturers must consider, starting with the choice of materials. TPEs are valued for their softness, biocompatibility, and ability to form secure seals. Their versatility in both function and form makes them especially well-suited to improving the day-to-day experience of users without compromising performance.
Secure bonding for leak resistance -Kraiburg TPE’s material solutions exhibit exceptional adhesion to polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE). This good bonding capability makes them ideal for products that require leak-resistant seals, flexibility, and long-term durability. At the same time, they help simplify assembly by eliminating the need for additional adhesives.
Durable seals for frequent use – The TPE compounds offer high elasticity, and a low compression set. These properties make them suitable for ostomy bag seals, which need to maintain their shape under pressure to prevent leaks. The material’s flexibility allows it to move with the body, helping to provide a secure and comfortable fit for daily use.
Material safety compliant for medical use – These TPE compounds are sterilisable using autoclaving at 121°C or ethylene oxide, meeting the stringent hygiene protocols required for medical devices. They comply with ISO 10993-5, GB/T 16886.5 (cytotoxicity), Regulation (EU) No 10/2011, US FDA CFR 21, and GB 4806.7-2023, and contain no animal-derived ingredients.
Thermolast H, skin-safe TPE for high-performance dermatoscopes
Tanned skin is everywhere—on beaches, billboards, and all social media! Whether it is from frolicking under the sun or hitting indoor salons, everyone is chasing that bronzed look. As influencer culture keeps pushing it as the beauty ideal, skin experts are raising the alarm: repeated tanning, especially without protection, can lead to sunspots, early aging, and even skin cancer. Truth be told, that sun-kissed glow might come at a serious cost.
Early detection of skin cancer improves treatment outcomes and can preempt its progression. Dermatoscopes are indispensable tools for identifying skin issues at the onset, both in healthcare and professional in-home care settings. Kraiburg TPE’s medical-grade Thermolast H series meets these requirements, making it ideal for dermatoscopes and other equipment designed for frequent use and consistent performance.
Optimised properties for critical medical applications – Thermolast H provides superior adhesion to polar substrates like PP and PE, making it well-suited for use in multi-component medical devices such as dermatoscopes. This enhances manufacturing efficiency and supports long-term part integrity, even under frequent handling in clinical settings. Its optimised compression set helps sealing components retain their shape and function through repeated sterilisation and use, maintaining both hygiene and performance. The material is also colourable, enabling customisation for branding, component coding, or design appeal. With a soft-touch surface, it provides a premium tactile experience and improved grip comfort during extended use by healthcare professionals.
Compliance with medical standards – Thermolast H TPE compounds are free from animal ingredients, supporting ethical sourcing and meeting the growing demand for animal-free medical products. They comply with key international standards—including EU Regulation No 10/2011, US FDA CFR 21 (raw material conformity), ISO 10993-5, and GB/T 16886.5, thus ensuring material safety in healthcare applications. This regulatory compliance gives manufacturers and end-users confidence in both the quality and biocompatibility of the product.
Top choice for soft-touch and enhanced visual impact – This TPE series is colourable, allowing customisation for branding, component coding, or product aesthetics. Its soft-touch surface enhances grip comfort and provides a premium tactile experience during prolonged use by healthcare professionals. In terms of functionality, the material offers excellent versatility, supporting features like tactile switches, soft-touch grips, and comfort mats. It is also suitable for components such as seals, valves, flexible connectors, closures, and mouthpieces, combining safety and performance to meet the industry benchmark for advanced medical devices.
Snooze the snore with next-generation TPE solutions
Kraiburg TPE’s compounds offer a soft surface, flexibility, high elasticity, and low friction, ensuring excellent comfort and durability even with extended use of anti-snore devices.
Snoring, that noisy, rumbling breathing while you sleep, can signal underlying issues like partial airway obstruction, especially if it’s loud or frequent. Fortunately, there are effective ways to manage snoring—from lifestyle changes to innovative medical devices. Mouthguards, nasal dilators, and other oral appliances can help reduce disruptive snoring.
Kraiburg TPE’s high-quality, custom-engineered TPE materials possess properties such as durability, chemical resistance, biocompatibility, and more that make them well-suited for anti-snore devices and other medical products.
Safe, medical-grade materials – KRAIBURG TPE’s TPE grades meet strict global safety standards for medical technology, including US FDA CFR 21 raw material compliance, EU food-contact regulation No. 10/2011, in vitro cytotoxicity requirements for medical devices as specified in DIN ISO 10993-5 and GB/T 16886.5 (China), as well as RoHS and REACH regulations. These TPEs are free from animal ingredients, PVC, silicone, and latex, making them suitable for a wide range of medical devices.
Designed for durability, comfort and style – Kraiburg TPE’s compounds offer a soft surface, flexibility, high elasticity, and low friction, ensuring excellent comfort and durability even with extended use of anti-snore devices. Available in translucent and transparent options, these materials can be coloured to enhance aesthetics and allow customisation to fit specific product requirements.
Sterilisable for hygienic use – Kraiburg TPE’s medical material solutions are sterilisable by autoclave at 121°C and ethylene oxide (EtO), which maintain the hygiene and safety of anti-snore devices during regular use. These sterilisation methods also maintain material integrity while adhering to high medical standards.
Medical-grade solutions for versatile health applications – Kraiburg TPE’s compounds provide excellent adhesion to polyolefins such as PP and PE and can be processed via injection moulding or extrusion, thus rendering a cost-effective solution for manufacturers. Aside from anti-snoring devices, these medical-grade TPEs are also well-suited for a broad range of health and hygiene applications. Typical uses include functional and design components, seals, flexible connectors, mouthpieces, and closures—where comfort, safety, and reliable performance matter most.
Soft-touch, durable & sustainable TPE for electric shavers
For today’s consumers, “less is more” captures a growing preference for simplicity and purpose. The minimalist mindset also influences grooming, where appearance expresses personal values. A neat haircut, clean shave, or well-tapered beard signals readiness to engage with the world. Yet personal values are about more than looks, especially when sustainability matters in choosing products.
This mindset drives current trends in personalized, holistic self-care, with personal care tools such as electric shavers designed to match consumers’ expectations for sustainability, ease of use, visual appeal, and dependable performance.
Material advantage for product reliability – Kraiburg TPE’s ThermolastR series TPE is suitable for multi-component injection molding, offering good flowability, superior mechanical properties, and excellent adhesion to PP, all ensuring durable component bonding and enhanced performance in electric shavers. With a broad hardness range (30 to 90 Shore A) and temperature stability up to 80 °C, the TPE series provides outstanding wear resistance and long-lasting reliability, even with frequent use.
User-focused benefits in ergonomics and style – The Thermolast R sustainable TPE series is suitable for producing both soft, comfortable grips and more rigid, durable parts for electric shavers. It is an effective design solution for ergonomic grips and anti-slip surfaces that enhance user comfort and allow for greater precision. Featuring a flexible, non-sticky surface with excellent haptics, the TPE series provides a smooth, pleasant tactile feel that improves grip, delivering the precision and control valued by electric shaver users.
The TPE compounds also enable a wide range of design possibilities for electric shavers, offering in-house color options for aesthetic diversity through customizable colors, finishes, and textures.
Compliance to high standards of safety and sustainability – The Thermolast R series rigorously complies with FDA CFR 21 standards, as well as REACH SVHC and RoHS regulations. Selected compounds from the series have been certified by the Global Recycled Standard (GRS). This strict adherence to global product standards highlights Kraiburg TPE’s commitment to providing high-quality advanced materials, sustainable sourcing, and responsible manufacturing practices.
Sustainability from the get-go
At Kraiburg TPE, sustainability drives its innovation. Its portfolio includes bio-based TPEs and compounds with post-consumer (PCR) and post-industrial (PIR) recycled content. Selected TPEs are certified under GRS and ISCC PLUS. We also provide Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) data upon request to support sustainability decisions. It earned the EcoVadis Gold Medal in 2025 and are committed to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), aligning our goals with global climate action. From reducing emissions to increasing circularity, Kraiburg TPE’s sustainable TPEs deliver reliable performance and are available worldwide to support customer applications while advancing their sustainability goals. (Press Release)
Category: Technology & Devices
