Copy to clipboard 
The OMTEC® Excellence Awards celebrate advancements that are shaping the future of orthopedic manufacturing, device performance and patient care. Stryker, Carlsmed and THINK Surgical took home this year’s top honors and will be recognized during an awards ceremony at OMTEC 2026.
Representatives from the winning companies will also discuss their innovative products and share the challenges they faced, the pivotal development decisions they made and the key lessons they realized in bringing groundbreaking technologies to market. Secure your spot at OMTEC to help celebrate their achievements and learn from their successes.
Cementless Implant Addresses Allergy Concerns
Stryker earned an OMTEC Excellence Award for the development of Triathlon Gold, the company’s most recent innovation in 3D-printed implants. Triathlon Gold, which is an option for patients with metal sensitivity or bone cement allergy concerns, combines the company’s Triathlon CR design with an additively manufactured titanium substrate and biocompatible titanium nitride coating.
It’s Stryker’s first additively manufactured femoral component and its first product with a titanium nitride coating, which has traditionally been used in implant designs for patients with metal sensitivity concerns.
“Globally, there is a range of patients who present with metal sensitivity or cement allergy concerns, and our surgeon customers asked us to develop an option for these patients,” said Lewis Mullen, Director of Advanced Technology at Stryker.
The company continues to build on the 20-year legacy of the Triathlon portfolio and its strong clinical evidence for stability, survivorship, and patient satisfaction.
Triathlon Gold can be implanted with cemented or cementless fixation, a level of flexibility that matches current trends in joint replacement care. And that the device’s femoral component is additively manufactured from Ti6Al4V as a single piece means the titanium porous structure is an integral part of the substrate and therefore doesn’t require complex secondary treatments such as plasma spraying or beading.
“A key achievement was successfully building the titanium substrate and meeting dimensional requirements for such a geometrically complex component,” Mullen said. “Fortunately, we had access to a range of additive manufacturing techniques, which enabled us to identify the optimal method for the task.”
Advancing Patient-specific Spine Surgery
Personalized surgical solutions continue to advance patient care, and Carlsmed is bringing that movement to the spine market. The company’s aprevo technology platform combines patient-specific surgical planning and 3D-printed implants with a data-driven feedback loop to improve the outcomes of lumbar and cervical fusions.
Those advancements make Carlsmed a worthy recipient of an OMTEC Excellence Award.
“Integrating digital preoperative planning and postoperative intelligence is reshaping how spine surgery is performed,” said Mike Cordonnier, Co-Founder, Chairman and CEO of Carlsmed. “We shift key decision-making to the preoperative phase, using data to create a highly predictable intraoperative experience.”
One of the key advantages of the aprevo technology is the ability to leverage clinical data to support regulatory and reimbursement pathways. Carlsmed submitted that data to FDA and received Breakthrough Device designation, initially for aprevo’s lumbar application. The designations allowed Carlsmed to secure a New Technology Add-on Payment (NTAP) for Medicare patients.
The company continued to collect clinical data, leading to the securement of permanent DRG reimbursement, which provides incremental Medicare payments for the lumbar fusion technology and gives hospitals a financial incentive to adopt the device that can improve outcomes while lowering the overall cost of care.
After seeing significant traction for aprevo’s lumbar spine application, Carlsmed expanded the technology into the cervical spine. Cordonnier said it’s difficult to achieve positive outcomes in anterior cervical discectomy and fusion in patients with osteoporosis, osteopenia, or generally soft bone, which leads to higher revision rates that affect roughly one-third of cervical fusion patients.
Carlsmed developed the aprevo cervical technology specifically for this population.
“Unlike traditional wedge-shaped interbody devices that often require removal of endplate bone for placement, our implants are designed to be wider and extend out to the uncinate joints,” Cordonnier said. “That design creates a larger surface area, which is great for contacting soft bone.”
Cordonnier considers Carlsmed the only pure-play personalized surgery company creating value across the surgical ecosystem. For patients, that means more predictable procedures. For surgeons, it shifts decision-making to the preoperative phase and makes the intraoperative experience more consistent and controlled. And for payors, it means reducing costly revisions by improving the efficiency and outcomes of primary procedures.
“We’re growing rapidly and still in the early stages, and we’re very excited about what the future holds for personalized surgery,” Cordonnier said. “Our commitment to innovation will continue as we expand access to data-driven solutions.”
Disrupting the Robotic Surgery Market
THINK Surgical bet on the big-time potential of the TMINI System, a CT-based, implant-agnostic handheld robot, and the open platform robotic surgery concept. The investment is paying off in a huge way and is worthy of one of this year’s OMTEC Excellence Awards.
“We are changing the paradigm in joint replacement robotics and disrupting the business model of closed platform systems,” said Jon Gibson, Vice President of Marketing at THINK Surgical. “Open platform is the future of the market, and we believe this disruption benefits surgeons, hospitals, ASCs, and patients.”
Because TMINI is not tied to a single implant system, THINK Surgical supports a broad library of implant designs. If a surgeon is seeing increased adoption of a particular implant, but also wants to use robotics, they now have a pathway to do both.
Two years ago, THINK Surgical inked a limited distribution agreement with Zimmer Biomet, which added a customized TMINI to its robotic surgery portfolio. In February of this year, THINK Surgical received FDA 510(k) clearance for the TMINI’s compatibility with Stryker’s Triathlon Knee System, expanding the system’s applications to nine compatible implant options.
THINK Surgical has a proprietary method that’s been cleared through the regulatory process, allowing the company to integrate implants into the TMINI platform without requiring direct partnership with implant manufacturers. From a strategic standpoint, the company can move toward adding implant systems with the highest market share.
Disrupting the joint replacement market requires more than strong technology, according to Gibson, who cited three key factors: a compelling robotic platform, a high-quality implant system, and a differentiated business model.
“That last piece is what breaks the closed-system structure we’ve historically seen in orthopedics,” Gibson said. “We’re starting to see pressure build in that direction. Hospitals are entering contracts that involve multiple robots, which are unsustainable. The market is being forced to rethink how robotic systems are deployed and integrated.”
THINK Surgical wants to add more major implant brands onto the TMINI platform, with the goal of reaching approximately 95% market coverage by the end of the year. Once the company reaches that level, its focus will shift from proving the feasibility of open platform robotic surgery to driving greater adoption among surgeons by educating the market, scaling the model, and accelerating commercial traction.
Over the long-term, the company will continue to evolve the TMINI platform by adding features and potentially expanding indications.
“But the strategic inflection point is now,” Gibson said. “By the end of this year, we expect to be in a position where we are directly challenging the closed-platform paradigm.”
The OMTEC® Excellence Awards celebrate advancements that are shaping the future of orthopedic manufacturing, device performance and patient care. Stryker, Carlsmed and THINK Surgical took home this year’s top honors and will be recognized during an awards ceremony at OMTEC 2026.
Representatives from the winning companies will also...
The OMTEC® Excellence Awards celebrate advancements that are shaping the future of orthopedic manufacturing, device performance and patient care. Stryker, Carlsmed and THINK Surgical took home this year’s top honors and will be recognized during an awards ceremony at OMTEC 2026.
Representatives from the winning companies will also discuss their innovative products and share the challenges they faced, the pivotal development decisions they made and the key lessons they realized in bringing groundbreaking technologies to market. Secure your spot at OMTEC to help celebrate their achievements and learn from their successes.
Cementless Implant Addresses Allergy Concerns
Stryker earned an OMTEC Excellence Award for the development of Triathlon Gold, the company’s most recent innovation in 3D-printed implants. Triathlon Gold, which is an option for patients with metal sensitivity or bone cement allergy concerns, combines the company’s Triathlon CR design with an additively manufactured titanium substrate and biocompatible titanium nitride coating.
It’s Stryker’s first additively manufactured femoral component and its first product with a titanium nitride coating, which has traditionally been used in implant designs for patients with metal sensitivity concerns.
“Globally, there is a range of patients who present with metal sensitivity or cement allergy concerns, and our surgeon customers asked us to develop an option for these patients,” said Lewis Mullen, Director of Advanced Technology at Stryker.
The company continues to build on the 20-year legacy of the Triathlon portfolio and its strong clinical evidence for stability, survivorship, and patient satisfaction.
Triathlon Gold can be implanted with cemented or cementless fixation, a level of flexibility that matches current trends in joint replacement care. And that the device’s femoral component is additively manufactured from Ti6Al4V as a single piece means the titanium porous structure is an integral part of the substrate and therefore doesn’t require complex secondary treatments such as plasma spraying or beading.
“A key achievement was successfully building the titanium substrate and meeting dimensional requirements for such a geometrically complex component,” Mullen said. “Fortunately, we had access to a range of additive manufacturing techniques, which enabled us to identify the optimal method for the task.”
Advancing Patient-specific Spine Surgery
Personalized surgical solutions continue to advance patient care, and Carlsmed is bringing that movement to the spine market. The company’s aprevo technology platform combines patient-specific surgical planning and 3D-printed implants with a data-driven feedback loop to improve the outcomes of lumbar and cervical fusions.
Those advancements make Carlsmed a worthy recipient of an OMTEC Excellence Award.
“Integrating digital preoperative planning and postoperative intelligence is reshaping how spine surgery is performed,” said Mike Cordonnier, Co-Founder, Chairman and CEO of Carlsmed. “We shift key decision-making to the preoperative phase, using data to create a highly predictable intraoperative experience.”
One of the key advantages of the aprevo technology is the ability to leverage clinical data to support regulatory and reimbursement pathways. Carlsmed submitted that data to FDA and received Breakthrough Device designation, initially for aprevo’s lumbar application. The designations allowed Carlsmed to secure a New Technology Add-on Payment (NTAP) for Medicare patients.
The company continued to collect clinical data, leading to the securement of permanent DRG reimbursement, which provides incremental Medicare payments for the lumbar fusion technology and gives hospitals a financial incentive to adopt the device that can improve outcomes while lowering the overall cost of care.
After seeing significant traction for aprevo’s lumbar spine application, Carlsmed expanded the technology into the cervical spine. Cordonnier said it’s difficult to achieve positive outcomes in anterior cervical discectomy and fusion in patients with osteoporosis, osteopenia, or generally soft bone, which leads to higher revision rates that affect roughly one-third of cervical fusion patients.
Carlsmed developed the aprevo cervical technology specifically for this population.
“Unlike traditional wedge-shaped interbody devices that often require removal of endplate bone for placement, our implants are designed to be wider and extend out to the uncinate joints,” Cordonnier said. “That design creates a larger surface area, which is great for contacting soft bone.”
Cordonnier considers Carlsmed the only pure-play personalized surgery company creating value across the surgical ecosystem. For patients, that means more predictable procedures. For surgeons, it shifts decision-making to the preoperative phase and makes the intraoperative experience more consistent and controlled. And for payors, it means reducing costly revisions by improving the efficiency and outcomes of primary procedures.
“We’re growing rapidly and still in the early stages, and we’re very excited about what the future holds for personalized surgery,” Cordonnier said. “Our commitment to innovation will continue as we expand access to data-driven solutions.”
Disrupting the Robotic Surgery Market
THINK Surgical bet on the big-time potential of the TMINI System, a CT-based, implant-agnostic handheld robot, and the open platform robotic surgery concept. The investment is paying off in a huge way and is worthy of one of this year’s OMTEC Excellence Awards.
“We are changing the paradigm in joint replacement robotics and disrupting the business model of closed platform systems,” said Jon Gibson, Vice President of Marketing at THINK Surgical. “Open platform is the future of the market, and we believe this disruption benefits surgeons, hospitals, ASCs, and patients.”
Because TMINI is not tied to a single implant system, THINK Surgical supports a broad library of implant designs. If a surgeon is seeing increased adoption of a particular implant, but also wants to use robotics, they now have a pathway to do both.
Two years ago, THINK Surgical inked a limited distribution agreement with Zimmer Biomet, which added a customized TMINI to its robotic surgery portfolio. In February of this year, THINK Surgical received FDA 510(k) clearance for the TMINI’s compatibility with Stryker’s Triathlon Knee System, expanding the system’s applications to nine compatible implant options.
THINK Surgical has a proprietary method that’s been cleared through the regulatory process, allowing the company to integrate implants into the TMINI platform without requiring direct partnership with implant manufacturers. From a strategic standpoint, the company can move toward adding implant systems with the highest market share.
Disrupting the joint replacement market requires more than strong technology, according to Gibson, who cited three key factors: a compelling robotic platform, a high-quality implant system, and a differentiated business model.
“That last piece is what breaks the closed-system structure we’ve historically seen in orthopedics,” Gibson said. “We’re starting to see pressure build in that direction. Hospitals are entering contracts that involve multiple robots, which are unsustainable. The market is being forced to rethink how robotic systems are deployed and integrated.”
THINK Surgical wants to add more major implant brands onto the TMINI platform, with the goal of reaching approximately 95% market coverage by the end of the year. Once the company reaches that level, its focus will shift from proving the feasibility of open platform robotic surgery to driving greater adoption among surgeons by educating the market, scaling the model, and accelerating commercial traction.
Over the long-term, the company will continue to evolve the TMINI platform by adding features and potentially expanding indications.
“But the strategic inflection point is now,” Gibson said. “By the end of this year, we expect to be in a position where we are directly challenging the closed-platform paradigm.”
You’ve reached your limit.
We’re glad you’re finding value in our content — and we’d love for you to keep going.
Subscribe now for unlimited access to orthopedic business intelligence.
DC
Dan Cook is a senior editor with more than 18 years of experience in medical publishing and an extensive background in covering orthopedics and outpatient surgery. He joined ORTHOWORLD to develop content focused on important industry trends, top thought leaders and innovative technologies.
