Development story of Moldcare

01 Background of the development of Moldcare RI II

ALCARE, the company that developed Japan’s first plaster cast products in 1953, was about to launch the development of an easily, flexibly moldable splint made of hydraulic setting urethane resin in the 1990s, ahead of our competitors, using hydraulic setting urethane resin roll casts at the time. The ALCARE laboratory at the time considered horizontal application of hydraulic setting urethane resin to other product families in addition to the roll casts, and in fact, a variety of ideas were born based on technological considerations. At that time, we at ALCARE were handling thermoplastic masks (shells) for immobilization of the patient’s face during radiography. These were intended for gamma knife therapy, but a problem with unstable immobilization remained. We were then asked about the possibility to develop a pillow that could be shaped freely to adapt to secure immobilization around the patient’s neck. This motivated us to propose a convincing solution in the field of radiography using the core technology obtained through external fixation in orthopedics, which had been our business domain since the establishment of the company. In this way, the technological development of Moldcare RI II was launched.