Aselsan Hlm by Eren Donertas Advances Cardiac Surgery Safety through Modular Design

How Aselsan Combined Comprehensive User Research with Modular Engineering to Develop a Heart Lung Machine Recognized for Design Excellence

What happens when an electronics manufacturer known for communication systems and defense technology decides to tackle one of the most demanding challenges in healthcare? The answer lies in a two-year design odyssey that produced a modular heart lung machine now recognized with a Golden A' Design Award. The Aselsan HLM represents a fascinating case study in how rigorous user research, combined with thoughtful engineering, can produce medical equipment that genuinely serves the professionals who operate the equipment during the most critical moments of cardiac surgery.

Heart lung machines are remarkable devices. During open-heart surgery, heart lung machines temporarily take over the function of the heart and lungs, circulating and oxygenating blood while surgeons work. The professionals who operate heart lung machines are called perfusionists, and their role is nothing short of essential. Perfusionists monitor blood flow, manage temperature, administer medications, and make split-second decisions that directly affect patient outcomes. Now imagine performing all of these responsibilities in an operating theater filled with beeping monitors, surgical teams moving around you, and the weight of a human life resting on your concentration.

Designer Eren Donertas approached the challenge of supporting perfusionists with a question that became the foundation of the entire project: How can design reduce the cognitive and physical burden on perfusionists during surgeries that can last for hours? The resulting design demonstrates what becomes possible when companies commit to understanding their users at the deepest level. This article explores the methodologies, decisions, and innovations that made the Aselsan HLM a standout example of medical device design, offering insights for any organization considering entry into the healthcare equipment sector.

Understanding the Operating Theater Environment

Before examining the design itself, understanding the environment where heart lung machines operate proves essential. Operating theaters during cardiac surgery are highly dynamic spaces. Surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, and perfusionists all work in close proximity, each with their own equipment, responsibilities, and spatial requirements. The room hums with the sounds of various monitors, each demanding attention. Lighting is intense and focused. Communication happens rapidly, often in specialized terminology developed over decades of medical practice.

For a perfusionist, the workstation becomes command central for the duration of surgery. Perfusionists must monitor multiple parameters simultaneously while making adjustments to flow rates, temperatures, and medication delivery. The heart lung machine itself connects to the patient through an intricate network of tubing, and every component placement affects how blood moves through the system. Blood flow through the machine is where the concept of hemolysis becomes relevant. Hemolysis refers to the breakdown of red blood cells, and the path blood travels through the machine can either minimize or exacerbate hemolysis. Higher hemolysis rates can complicate patient recovery, making the physical arrangement of machine components a genuinely consequential design decision.

The Aselsan HLM addresses operating theater space constraints through compact dimensions measuring 950 by 410 by 1200 millimeters. The compact footprint allows the device to position closer to the patient bed while leaving adequate space for other team members to move freely. The design team recognized that in crowded operating theaters, every centimeter matters. A smaller machine that maintains full functionality represents a meaningful contribution to the surgical workspace.

The Research Foundation Behind Medical Device Design

What distinguishes truly excellent medical device design from adequate solutions often comes down to research depth. The Aselsan HLM project demonstrates an exemplary approach to understanding users who work in environments most designers will never experience firsthand. The research program spanned the full two-year development timeline, running from July 2020 to July 2022 in Ankara, Turkey.

The methodology combined multiple research techniques to build a comprehensive understanding of perfusionist needs. Five expert interviews provided foundational knowledge about the profession and the challenges perfusionists face. A literature review established the scientific and technical context. A survey with 27 attendees gathered quantitative insights about common pain points and preferences. Twelve in-depth interviews allowed for detailed exploration of individual experiences and workflows. Eight in-situ observations brought the design team directly into operating theaters to witness the reality of cardiac surgery firsthand.

Perhaps most remarkable was the decision to participate in long-running open-heart surgeries. The level of commitment to user research demonstrated by the Aselsan team is uncommon, and for good reason. Operating theaters present unfamiliar territory for product designers. The terminology is specialized, the protocols are strict, and the stakes could not be higher. Yet the design team recognized that true empathy for perfusionists required experiencing their environment directly. The design team observed how perfusionists positioned themselves relative to equipment, how perfusionists reached for controls, where their eyes traveled when monitoring multiple parameters, and how fatigue accumulated over hours of intense concentration.

The research program yielded several critical insights that directly shaped the final design. Keeping the device as small as possible emerged as a priority. Reducing the areas requiring constant visual monitoring became essential. Bringing interactions closer to the user's natural reach zone proved important for reducing physical strain. Enabling easy configuration changes for each unique surgery became a fundamental requirement. The research insights transformed from abstract goals into concrete design specifications through the systematic research process.

Modularity as a Strategic Design Approach

The modular architecture of the Aselsan HLM represents the project's most distinctive contribution to heart lung machine design. Rather than presenting perfusionists with a fixed configuration, the device allows users to create custom arrangements tailored to the specific requirements of each open-heart surgery. The modular flexibility acknowledges a fundamental truth about cardiac procedures: no two surgeries are identical.

The modularity centers on detachable pump units that can be positioned according to the needs of each case. Each pump unit features its own touch screen and control knob, allowing the perfusionist to perform most required actions without returning to the main control interface. The distributed control architecture creates multiple interaction points, each positioned where the interaction point will be most useful for a given surgical configuration.

The main screen serves as the central configuration hub where perfusionists establish initial settings. From there, the pump units become semi-autonomous workstations that bring critical information and controls into the perfusionist's immediate reach zone. The distributed control approach reduces the physical movement required during surgery. Instead of repeatedly traveling to a central control panel, perfusionists can manage their most frequent interactions from wherever they are positioned.

The implications for cognitive load are significant. When vital information appears on screens positioned near the reservoir and key tubing lines, perfusionists can gather essential data with minimal eye movement. The arrangement reduces the mental effort required to synthesize information from disparate sources. Everything the perfusionist needs to monitor comes together in a reachable and visible area, allowing perfusionists to maintain situational awareness with less strain.

The pump units themselves feature plastic shells that make the units easy to carry and reposition. The lightweight plastic shell design reflects the research insight that configurations may need adjustment during surgery as circumstances evolve. A pump unit that is difficult to move becomes a barrier to optimal setup. A pump unit designed for easy handling becomes a tool that genuinely serves user needs.

Material Selection and Manufacturing Decisions

The material choices for the Aselsan HLM reflect careful consideration of the operating theater environment's unique demands. Medical equipment faces exposure to cleaning agents, sterilization processes, and biological materials. Materials must withstand repeated cleaning without degradation while maintaining functional and aesthetic qualities over years of service.

Steel forms the primary material for large volume components. Selecting steel delivers multiple benefits simultaneously. Steel offers excellent cleanability, allowing thorough disinfection between procedures. Steel provides resistance to viruses and other pathogens, a consideration that gained heightened importance during the project's 2020 to 2022 development period. Steel also delivers the durability required for equipment that will see intensive daily use over an extended service life. Large volumes are created through steel sheet bending, a manufacturing technique that produces clean surfaces without joints or crevices where contaminants might accumulate.

Chemical and ultraviolet resistant materials appear throughout the device, enabling users to apply the cleaning protocols required in healthcare settings. Medical equipment cleaning often involves harsh agents that would damage consumer electronics quickly. The Aselsan HLM's material specification supports compatibility with necessary cleaning regimens.

CNC machining produces all mechanical parts within the pump units, delivering the precision required for medical applications. The combination of precise machining with robust material selection creates components that maintain performance characteristics over time.

A notable aspect of the manufacturing strategy involves local parts sourcing within Turkey. Local sourcing supports sustainability goals while potentially shortening supply chains and improving serviceability. When replacement parts are available locally, equipment can return to service more quickly following maintenance. Geographic proximity between manufacturer and supply chain may prove increasingly valuable as organizations seek more resilient procurement strategies.

Strategic Expansion into Healthcare Technology

The Aselsan HLM represents more than a single product launch. The project demonstrates how organizations with established capabilities in adjacent sectors can successfully expand into healthcare technology. Aselsan brings extensive experience in electronics manufacturing across communication systems, electro-optics, transportation, security, and automation systems. The UGES Business Sector, which encompasses transportation, security, energy, smart systems, and healthcare systems, carries a vision of being a high-technology company that designs the future with industrial products while maintaining sustainable development globally.

The expansion into medical systems follows a strategic logic. The technical capabilities required for sophisticated electronics manufacturing transfer meaningfully to medical device production. Quality control systems, precision manufacturing processes, and engineering expertise developed in demanding applications provide a foundation for healthcare technology development. The key differentiator becomes the user research and design methodology that transforms engineering capability into products that genuinely serve healthcare professionals.

The Golden A' Design Award recognition in the Medical Devices and Medical Equipment Design category acknowledges the quality of the strategic approach. The award recognizes designs that advance art, science, design, and technology while embodying excellence and impacting the world with desirable characteristics. For organizations building credibility in new market sectors, recognition from an established international design competition provides third-party acknowledgment of design quality.

Intellectual property development accompanied the design process, with applications for intellectual property rights filed in August 2022. The filing timing, coordinated with project completion in July 2022, indicates a systematic approach to protecting the innovations embedded in the modular architecture and user interface design. Companies entering medical device markets benefit from intellectual property protective measures, which secure the investment in research and development while potentially creating licensing opportunities.

For brands seeking to understand how design excellence translates into market recognition, the opportunity to explore aselsan's award-winning heart lung machine design offers concrete insights into what distinguished the Aselsan HLM project. The combination of extensive user research, modular innovation, thoughtful material selection, and strategic manufacturing decisions created a cohesive product that earned recognition at an elevated level of the A' Design Award competition.

Design Excellence as a Healthcare Contribution

The broader implications of projects like the Aselsan HLM extend beyond commercial considerations. When medical equipment design genuinely reduces cognitive and physical burden on healthcare professionals, the benefits cascade through the healthcare system. Perfusionists who can work with less strain over long surgeries maintain their concentration and decision-making capacity throughout procedures. Equipment configurations optimized for each surgery contribute to smoother blood flow paths that may support patient recovery.

The optimized arrangement of components connected to the device decreases hemolysis of blood. The design approach that prioritizes blood path optimization represents a thoughtful contribution to the field. Design decisions that consider the journey of blood through the system reflect the kind of holistic thinking that distinguishes excellent medical equipment from merely adequate solutions.

The user interface design philosophy also merits attention. By consolidating most required actions into the pump unit touch screens and knobs after initial main screen configuration, the design creates a workflow that matches how perfusionists actually operate during surgery. Alignment between device interface and user workflow represents good design practice in any field, but in medical applications, the alignment carries particular significance.

The design also addresses the conservative usage tendencies common among medical professionals. The research phase identified conservative usage tendencies as a challenge, and the final product addresses the challenge through intuitive interactions that respect existing workflows while offering new capabilities. Perfusionists accustomed to traditional equipment can approach the Aselsan HLM with their existing mental models while gradually discovering the advantages of the modular architecture.

Forward Perspectives in Medical Device Design

The methodologies demonstrated in the Aselsan HLM project offer a template for organizations considering medical device development. The commitment to extensive user research, including direct observation in clinical settings, provides insights that surveys and interviews alone cannot capture. The willingness to invest two years in development, from July 2020 to July 2022, reflects the understanding that medical device design cannot be rushed without compromising quality.

The modular approach to equipment design may influence future developments in the field. As personalized medicine gains prominence across healthcare, equipment that adapts to individual cases rather than imposing fixed configurations aligns with broader industry directions. The Aselsan HLM demonstrates that configuration flexibility can be achieved through thoughtful engineering without sacrificing the robustness required for critical medical applications.

Recognition through the A' Design Award competition brings visibility to design innovations that might otherwise remain known primarily within specialist communities. When excellent medical device design receives international recognition, the recognition raises awareness of what becomes possible when organizations commit to user-centered approaches. International visibility may inspire other companies to pursue similar standards in their own medical technology initiatives.

The collaboration between designer Eren Donertas and Aselsan illustrates productive relationships between design expertise and manufacturing capability. Neither design vision nor manufacturing capacity alone produces excellent products. The synthesis of both, guided by comprehensive user research, creates opportunities for meaningful contributions to healthcare technology.

For organizations with established electronics manufacturing capabilities, the Aselsan HLM case suggests pathways into medical device markets that leverage existing strengths while developing new competencies in healthcare user research. The UGES Business Sector's mission of transforming technological achievements into economic values finds expression in strategic expansion into healthcare technology.

Synthesizing Insights for Design Practice

The Aselsan HLM project illuminates several principles that apply across medical device design and beyond. User research that includes direct observation in operational environments yields insights unavailable through other methods. Modular architectures that allow user configuration create flexibility without complexity when thoughtfully implemented. Material selection decisions cascade through product lifespan, affecting cleanability, durability, and sustainability. Strategic timing of intellectual property protection coordinates with development milestones to secure innovation investments.

The Golden A' Design Award recognition places the Aselsan HLM among marvelous, outstanding, and trendsetting creations that reflect design wisdom and advance the field. For companies evaluating their own design initiatives, Golden A' Design Award recognition provides a benchmark for quality and a validation framework that carries international credibility.

The journey from electronics manufacturer to medical device innovator demonstrates that organizational capabilities can evolve purposefully into new domains. What makes transitions into new markets successful is the commitment to understanding new user populations at depth, respecting their expertise and workflows, and creating solutions that genuinely serve their needs.

As healthcare technology continues evolving, what role might design excellence play in shaping equipment that supports medical professionals during the most demanding moments of their practice?