Family firm hopes for bright future with new surgical device

A FAMILY business has created a unique surgical instrument which it hopes will revolutionise medical procedures.

Alan Heeley, managing director of Heeley Surgical in Sheffield, has developed a novel retractor using fibre optic technology to remove the need for a separate light source during surgery.

The self-illuminated hand-held device, which holds back tissue, can be used in breast, plastic and general surgery.

It can be used by surgeons working in difficult conditions such as in operating theatre emergencies, accident and emergency units, road accidents, war zones and in veterinary procedures.

The product will be launched early next month and has already attracted interest from surgeons in the NHS, private health providers and hospitals in the Middle East.

Heeley Surgical’s new retractor is battery-operated and has an in-built LED light. This gives all the light needed for up to four hours, removing the need for surgeons to manoeuvre overhead lights or light guide cables.

Because the retractor is single use, it is supplied sterile where as reusable instruments can take up to two days to sterilise.

Mr Heeley said:  “It can potentially cut waiting times for patients and bring savings for the NHS. 

“I still get a buzz out of doing what I do after almost 50 years in the trade. That comes from knowing that products I’ve designed are helping surgeons improve the health and well being of patients.” 

The development has only been possible because Alan himself was saved from paralysis by surgeons earlier in his life.

He started his family surgical instrument-making business back in 1977 along with wife Carol but was forced to sell up in 1999 when he needed to have three discs in his neck replaced, the result of a car accident years beforehand.

In 2008, the firm was resurrected from Thorncliffe Business Park, Chapeltown. Alan and Carol, who is finance director, were joined by son James with his IT expertise, and business has rapidly gone from strength to strength, with turnover doubling over the last two years.     

Heeley Surgical produces over 7,000 different types of hand-held surgical instruments, the majority of which are single use, made to the same design standards as reusable instruments, but from lower grade stainless steel.

The company supplies over 300 customers in the UK and overseas.  These range from large NHS trusts, primary care trusts, private hospitals and Middle Eastern hospitals to self-employed podiatrists.

Work is currently being carried out to expand the company’s offices and Alan and Carol’s daughter Louise recently joined on the administrative side. 

As sales of the retractor develop, along with other new products, new jobs should be created, says Heeley.

Experts from Creative Sheffield have helped Heeley Surgical to bring the retractor to market and are supporting the company’s expansion.

Support has included helping to protect the design of the new retractor, and advice on growth strategy and marketing.

Mr Heeley said: “The backing of Creative Sheffield has been fantastic and without it we probably wouldn’t have got our patent application in.”