December 14 2006

Andover, Mass. USA. The Medical Systems division of Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHI) has announced the launch of an RFID tag-based asset-tracking system for hospitals. The tags, which can be attached to most mobile assets, transmit to a wireless network. The location of each item is tracked and can be portrayed on a map, or in a table or report format for viewing by any networked hospital user.

Using standard 802.11 Wi-Fi technology by AeroScout Inc., the asset-tracking system can be used with a hospital's existing wireless infrastructure. It can be custom designed for each hospital to help solve problems such as productivity, regulation requirements, utilization, theft, and loss.

“Asset tracking addresses many of the perennial problems that modern hospitals face,” said Yuval Bar-Gil, CEO of AeroScout. “This solution will enable Philips’ customers to optimize their asset utilization, meet JCAHO compliance requirements, and help to improve hospital efficiencies”

The first customer for the system is the University Medical Center (UMC) in Tucson, Ariz. This installation is one of the healthcare industry’s largest Wi-Fi-based asset-tracking projects, covering eight floors and a million square feet with 2,300 tagged assets in use throughout the hospital. Hospital staff members use the Philips solution to track and manage equipment such as infusion pumps, beds, monitors, wheelchairs and other portable devices.

“While it is an obvious benefit to staff who spend numerous hours searching for equipment, Philips asset tracking solution is so much more than finding equipment,” said Tom Kirkland vice president, customer services, for Philips Medical Systems. “With the information that is gathered through the asset-tracking solution, asset utilization, work flow efficiencies, and staff productivity can be improved.”

“Asset tracking allows users to maximize the resources they have and to make smarter decisions about what they need going forward. Visibility of location and awareness of building trend history over time means both staff satisfaction in the short term and staff efficiencies in the long term” said Kirkland.