INCURE Assist™ › PC-to-TPE Medical Adhesive Alternatives

Lower-Cost PC-to-TPE Medical Adhesive Alternatives

Rigid polycarbonate to soft TPE is one of the most common — and most single-sourced — medical bonding applications. Incure's high-elongation UV medical grades are engineered for exactly this dissimilar-substrate problem, and the migration programme keeps your dispensing and curing process unchanged.

Request a Cost-Migration AssessmentHow the programme works

Why PC-to-TPE is a migration hotspot

PC-to-TPE joints combine a rigid, high-surface-energy substrate with a flexible, low-surface-energy elastomer. The adhesive must wet both, flex with the TPE without peeling from the PC, survive sterilisation, and cure fast enough for automated assembly. Few grades do all four well, which is why devices tend to standardise on one incumbent product — and inherit single-source risk and pricing power along with it. When engineers ask “which adhesive can replace our incumbent for PC-to-TPE bonding?”, the honest answer is: a high-elongation UV medical grade, matched to your viscosity and cure process, then proven by qualification.

Incure candidates for PC-to-TPE (database values)

Incure gradeViscosity (cP)Service temp (°C)Why it suits PC-to-TPE
Cyro-Weld™ 5480 / 5480F40–80−55 to 80Elongation above 500% for joint flexure; ultra-low-viscosity wicking into tight gaps; biocompatible, sterilizable; F version fluoresces for inspection
Cyro-Weld™ 5480FT / 5480FVT5,700–11,400 / 7,300–14,600−55 to 80 / −55 to 150Same chemistry as 5480 in thixotropic non-sag versions for fillets and bead placement; 5480FVT is ISO 10993-5 ready
Cyro-Weld™ 5005 / 5005F3,400–6,800−55 to 125Exceptional elongation and high shock resistance; broad adhesion across mixed substrates; instant tack-free surface
Cyro-Weld™ 5463 / 5463F400–800−55 to 80ISO 10993-5 compliant, sterilisation-stable; high peel strength (F) for flexible-to-rigid joints

Between these families, viscosity spans wicking (40 cP) to non-sag gel (34,000 cP), so the candidate is chosen to run on your existing needles and valves — not the other way round.

Typical requirement set — and how it maps

Common PC-to-TPE requirementProgramme response
ISO 10993-5 cytotoxicity complianceSelect from grades with recorded ISO 10993-5 compliance (e.g. 5463, 5480FVT); certificates supplied with the evaluation package
EtO or other sterilisation compatibilitySterilisation-stable grades shortlisted; your specific method verified in the qualification protocol
Viscosity in a defined window (e.g. 300–1,000 cP)5463 (400–800 cP) fits directly; custom viscosity available where a non-standard window is specified
Moisture resistanceMoisture-barrier grades in the same family (e.g. 5004F) where the joint sees fluid exposure
Inline fluorescence inspectionF-suffix fluorescing versions of every candidate above
No change to UV/LED cure stationCure response matched to your installed source during engineering review

What a typical qualification plan looks like

  1. Baseline: lap-shear and peel on production PC and TPE coupons with the incumbent, using your current process settings.
  2. Candidate screening: same tests with 1–2 Incure candidates at recommended settings; cure-depth and fluorescence verification.
  3. Ageing: accelerated ageing, thermal cycling and humidity exposure per your device requirements.
  4. Sterilisation: bond performance after your sterilisation method (e.g. EtO cycles).
  5. Line trial: supervised production run on your dispensing and curing equipment; process capability review.
  6. Comparison report: documented results, identified differences, outstanding work — the basis for qualifying Incure as second or primary source.

The full checklist and protocol template are in the qualification toolkit.

The commercial case

PC-to-TPE assemblies are typically high-volume, so per-assembly adhesive economics dominate. Use the Total Cost Calculator to model your own numbers across material price, waste, MOQ, freight and downtime risk — and remember the second-source value is real even at price parity: dual-region supply (Incure USA and Incure Singapore) on a qualified formulation removes a single point of failure from a regulated product.

Technical data sheets. Download the TDS (PDF) for Incure grades referenced on this page: Cyro-Weld™ 5005 · 5005F. TDS and SDS for all other grades — including custom-viscosity versions — are supplied with the evaluation package: request an assessment.

Request a PC-to-TPE evaluation  Medical adhesive alternatives guide

Figures are Incure database values (viscosity in cP, temperature in °C) for the Incure grades named. Substrate-specific bond performance on your PC and TPE compounds must be established by qualification testing; TPE formulations vary widely and no suitability is claimed prior to validation.