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Penn State Hershey Medical Center - Community Investment Taken to Heart

6/9/2009

Community Investment Program

For the last year and a half, Plouse Precision Manufacturing has been manufacturing parts for Penn State's Division of Artificial Organs. They pioneered the research and development of an artificial heart prototype within the walls of the Penn State Hershey Medical Center. The goal of the artificial heart is to replace a irreversibly failing heart. This will inevitably decrease the death rate associated with heart disease. In the United States, death rates for heart disease are dropping overall, while the presence of risk factors for developing heart disease is increasing.

"Plouse Precision Manufacturing plays a critical role in the manufacture of our parts for cardiovascular support research," said Bryan Fritz, Research Assistant at Penn State University M.S. Hershey Medical Center. "Be it a one-time design, a multi-part run, or help in reverse engineering, Plouse consistently delivers the highest quality machined parts. We look forward to our continued working relationship."

Penn State Hershey Medical Center 

Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center is committed to enhancing the quality of life through improved health, the discovery of knowledge that will benefit all, and the professional preparation of those who serve the health needs of others.

The Penn State Heart is implanted, along with a controller and energy transmission system in the space left by removal of the patient's heart. It is a completely implantable, totally electric artificial heart. Once the system is implanted in the patient, no wires, tubes or other connections protrude through the skin.

The result of nearly 30 years of research, the Penn State Heart is one of the most successful devices to emerge from a program supported by the U.S. National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. The device is expected to enter clinical trials in two years.

Giving Back

Dave Smith says: "It is our belief here at Plouse that as we prosper, we also have a responsibility to give back to the local community," states Dave Smith, Sales Manager at Plouse Precision Manufacturing. "That is why we manufacture parts for this program at cost, in the hope that the prototype will come to fruition and countless lives can be changed through everyone's efforts."

Plouse Precision Manufacturing has a relentless commitment to success for every client and to our community. We stand behind every product 100% with over 50 years of quality, innovation and problem solving experience, and we are proud to stand behind our community. We understand how serious heart disease is in the United States and are honored to assist in the Penn State Hershey Medical Center research process. The staff at Plouse looks forward to assisting them in future research projects.