Intuitive Manufactures Robotic Surgical Systems With Precision

Intuitive manufactures the surgeon console, patient side cart, and vision cart for its da Vinci surgical robotic systems at the company's Sunnyvale campus.

For over 25 years, Intuitive has focused on innovating minimally invasive care. The manufacturing process involves rigorous training, instilling in new employees the practice of building systems as if they were intended for family members or themselves.

Rolando Zamora, Supervisor of Manufacturing Training, emphasizes the company's commitment to patient safety. "I teach each individual to build a system as if it is to be used on a friend, a family member, a loved one, or even yourself. That’s the passion we try to instill on the manufacturing floor," Zamora said.

Following lean manufacturing standards, each of the over 7,600 fasteners in a da Vinci Xi system is installed by hand and 100% verified. The process records a digital 'signature' for each screw, with electronic records maintained in a device history database.

Mike Prindiville, Vice President of Process Engineering, describes robotics manufacturing as an integration of many technologies, including mechanisms, software, electronics, and sensors. The goal is to bring these technologies together in a consistent, reliable, and safe manner, making complex processes simple.