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The Roundtable: Biomedical Test Equipment

This month, TechNation asks the experts about trends in biomedical test equipment, including what you need to know about new technologies and how to handle your department’s challenges when it comes to test equipment purchases.

Fri Jun 01 2012By Lanier Norville, TechNation Magazine

This month, TechNation asks the experts about trends in biomedical test equipment, including what you need to know about new technologies and how to handle your department’s challenges when it comes to test equipment purchases. Responders include Boyd Campbell of Southeastern Biomedical, Ken O’Day of BC Biomedical and Gene Mitchell, biomed coordinator/ chaplain at Summit Medical Center.

What are the biggest trends right now in the test equipment market?
Campbell: The biggest trend we see right now is the need of multifunction analyzers that are capable of measuring or testing many different functions within one device. This is due to lower cost than buying the individual devices typically, and helps to increase productivity, and it cuts down on the number of devices that have to be calibrated each year.

Mitchell: [Trends I have seen include] portability and all-in-one with connections to CMMS or a computer database. Especially portability: it’s like having the service manual, schematics, tech support and comments right on the iPad! Being able to go to the equipment, get a reliable evaluation of the product, and save it for further evaluation and reporting purposes, or carrying your iPad with Internet connection allows you to have access to all available technical support and instantaneous blogs at your fingertips. With digital-CPU based test equipment, LCD, and all the newest stuff, the world of test equipment will be on a screen and look and function (on the screen) just like – and even better – than the old stuff.

O’Day: Tight budgets are dictating the need for test equipment that will provide the most functionality for the limited funding available. Test equipment that provides a variety of uses is becoming the latest trend. Compact, portable devices at a reasonable cost help the budget and allow the technicians to be more efficient at the same time.

How will the market for test equipment evolve in the next five years?


Campbell: With the demands to do more with less, we feel that more and more biomeds are going to be requiring test automation. We are already seeing this now since this it helps biomeds to get the job done more efficient, and also each technician is using the same procedures for more standardized testing.

Mitchell: There will be more and more digital representations of old line test equipment. Those manufacturers that will not change will be left in the dust. Remember “tubes > transistors > chip > LSID micro components? How about 8-track > cassette > CD > iPods? John F. Kennedy said, “Change is the law of life. Those who look only to the past or present are sure to miss the future.”

O’Day: There is an increasing interest in the ability to communicate with the medical facilities IT department and programs needed for quality control record-keeping. The next five years will show an increasing number of test devices that will interface one way or another with these systems. PMs and calibrations will be accomplished as the OEM recommends with just the push of a button. This will free up the technician’s time for other duties and help assure that the test protocols are being accomplished according to their quality program.

How will market changes and new technology affect the service of medical equipment?


Campbell: As new technologies, such as...

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