Mr. Napp, you work as a technician for the prosthetics manufacturer Ottobock. The company looks back on a history spanning almost 100 years. What did the prosthetics look like when it was founded?
Initially, each prosthesis was made individually by an orthopedic technician. They were made of wood and had little function. Knee joints worked like door hinges. An elastic band moved the knee forward. Otto Bock’s idea was to make prostheses an industrial mass product with a plug-in system.
A lot has changed since then.
A lot has happened, especially in terms of materials. Instead of wood, prostheses are now made of carbon, for example. This makes them lighter and more stable. There are also mechatronic knee joints today, equipped with electronics and sensors.
How do these advances affect the everyday lives of users?
Basically, we try to achieve the best possible biomechanical structure. This means that walking is as intuitive and safe as possible. In addition, the movements now appear much more natural and the prosthesis is less noticeable.
The company has a close connection to the Paralympics and its athletes. Why is this topic so important to you?
Our corporate goal is to make people mobile again. The Paralympic Games are of course a prime example of this. The athletes are not only mobile, they also achieve top sporting performances. We naturally want to support this.
How did the idea of having a workshop at the Paralympic Games come about?
The idea came to Australian technicians at the 1988 Summer Games in Seoul. At that time, the first carbon prostheses were used. However, as technology progressed, the risk of a defect also increased. In order to be able to help in an emergency, four technicians decided to support the athletes with a service workshop.
How many technicians are there today?
This year we are in Paris with 164 people.
How does a company prepare for such a major event?
For us, after the Paralympics is before the Paralympics. Preparations for Paris began directly after the Winter Games in Beijing. We are looking at the location. We are also talking to the organizer. It is important that we know in advance what space we have available so that we can draw up a workshop plan.
What is on this workshop plan?
Basically, you have to differentiate between our main workshop and other smaller workshops. The main workshop is about 600 square meters and is located directly in the Paralympic Village. It is equipped with a warehouse. There is also a reception area, a machine room and a welding area. There is also a fitting area. Nowadays, digital workstations are being added to the classic workbench blocks.
Is there an Ottobock village for you and your many colleagues?
There is an Ottobock hotel. Despite the 31 different languages, the atmosphere is always family-like. You come as a stranger and leave with friends. The atmosphere is always indescribably good.
2000
Repairs According to the company, the number of repairs was 1,000 by last Monday. Around 57 percent of these were repairs to wheelchairs and around 15 percent to prostheses. The technical team expects around 2,200 repairs by the end of the games.
In addition to a good atmosphere within the team, sport also has the ability to create magical moments.
The time at the Paralympics is always intense. I remember one of my first repairs in particular. A javelin thrower from the Cape Verde Islands had lost a lot of weight shortly before the games. As a result, his prosthesis no longer fit. His doctor recommended that he not take part in the competition. By repairing it, we were able to enable him to compete after all. Even today – years later – he still comes to the workshop occasionally. Now, however, as a trainer.
You do not make your support dependent on the brand of the prosthesis. Do you also come across innovations in the workshop?
Each sports prosthesis is individually made. This stimulates creativity, especially in countries with smaller budgets. Of course, there are sometimes special but also innovative solutions.
© AFP/Dimitar Dilkoff
What exactly do you have in mind when it comes to special solutions?
I remember a prosthesis for shooting. The athlete normally sits in a wheelchair and does not use a prosthesis. For the competitions, a prosthesis was made for him from a thermoplastic material that was placed around a wooden beam. It served its purpose. It was certainly quick and inexpensive to make.
What influence can sophisticated and well-fitted prostheses have on the success of an athlete?
The importance can be compared to the importance of the bicycle in the Tour de France. If you want to be successful here, you shouldn’t arrive on a mountain bike. In athletics in particular, it is particularly important to have suitable prostheses. If the equipment is slightly misaligned or damaged before the competition, it is difficult for even top athletes to win a medal.
In Paris, you are using 3D printing technology for the first time in the workshop. How does this change the processes?
Until now, we had to make plaster casts manually. On the one hand, this is very strenuous for the users. On the other hand, it is not efficient for the technician. The whole procedure took at least half a day. This of course meant a lot of manpower was lost. Thanks to the new technology with scanners and 3D printers, we can create the model digitally and have it printed in parallel. This also makes certain designs of individual components possible. This makes repairs more efficient and flexible overall.
Let’s look to the future. What further advances will technology make in the field of prosthetics?
It’s always difficult to look into a crystal ball. In general, technology will probably become more intuitive. I also think that 3D printing will play a bigger role in the future. It may be possible to produce an entire prosthesis using this process. Artificial intelligence will also probably automate many processes.
Are you afraid for your job because of these possible technological innovations?
Especially in projects like the service workshop at the Paralympic Games, I don’t expect the orthopedic technician to be replaced by artificial intelligence any time soon. Many processes can be automated, but the broken screw will still need to be replaced in ten years. In sport in particular, we are not dealing with high-tech prostheses. These are not permitted in competitions. All prostheses must be controlled by the user themselves. This excludes many of the newer technologies.
