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Philips Medical Systems relies upon Zebra Technologies

~ Clinical diagnostic equipment back up and running in a third of the time ensures patients have test when they need them ~

September 16, 2007

Zebra Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ: ZBRA), a global leader of on-demand printing solutions for business improvement, announced today that Philips Medical Systems (PMS) Italy has chosen Zebra RW420 mobile printers for a project to improve its patient diagnosis machinery management, maintenance and emergency repair processes.

PMS has been working closely with the San Gerardo Hospital of Monza, which has more than 80 electronic diagnostic machines, such as MRI scanners in place. Mobile technology has enabled PMS technicians to run maintenance programmes and handle any emergency repairs in a third of the time previously taken; ensuring they are available for patients almost continuously.

“This solution has allowed us to provide significantly improved support to the Gerardo Hospital” said Alberto Vago, field support manager at Philips Medical Systems Italy. “We are able to get clinical diagnosis machines back up and running in a third of a time it previously took. This has a dramatic effect on the treatment patients receive, as doctors and nurses have scanners and other hardware available to them as a result of significantly reduced down time.”

The use of mobile computing and printing technology was core to the solution, which is built around the Zebra Technologies RW420 mobile printer, combined with the HP iPAQhx2790. In addition, a dedicated website, PMS@yourside, has been built. This is used by both PMS and the hospital to share information about maintenance plans, scheduled calls, emergency calls and records for each of the machines installed at the hospital and the information is updated by the technicians in real time.

Thanks to the equipment provided to each PMS technician, emergency requests are received promptly and processed quicker than before, with many dealt with within a day, instead of the three days it took before. The Hospital now emails details of the machine with a problem and its location within the hospital to the PMS customer care centre. This information is then forwarded to the first available technician, who is online using the PDA on a GPRS connection. Details are also entered onto the website enabling the hospital to track progress and get almost real-time updates.

Once the job has been completed, both technician and client sign on the PDA and a receipt is double printed using the Zebra RW420. The “PMS@yourside” website is also automatically updated at the same time. The job report is available immediately and archived electronically by the end of the day. The hospital therefore has a complete history for the incident and the machine. In addition the double format documentation removes the need to scan the printed copy, allowing PMS to save about 800 man-hours each year.

“Zebra has been working closely with Philips Medical Systems since the beginning of the project and we are proud to have found the best solution for the needs of the San Gerardo Hospital of Monza,” said Luciano Magiar, business development manager, Zebra Technologies Italy. “Once again the Zebra RW420 printer has demonstrated its potential for field service applications. Furthermore, our partnership with KFI contributed to fully meeting Philips Medical Systems expectations”.
(540 words)

Executive quote

“Zebra has been working closely with Philips Medical Systems since the beginning of the project and we are proud to have found the best solution for the needs of the San Gerardo Hospital of Monza,” said Luciano Magiar, business development manager, Zebra Technologies Italy. “Once again the Zebra RW420 printer has demonstrated its potential for field service applications. Furthermore, our partnership with KFI contributed to fully meeting Philips Medical Systems expectations”.

Customer quote

“This solution has allowed us to provide significantly improved support to the Gerardo Hospital” said Alberto Vago, field support manager at Philips Medical Systems Italy. “We are able to get clinical diagnosis machines back up and running in a third of a time it previously took. This has a dramatic effect on the treatment patients receive, as doctors and nurses have scanners and other hardware available to them as a result of significantly reduced down time.”

About the company

NOTES TO EDITORS
About Zebra Technologies
Zebra Technologies Corporation (Nasdaq: ZBRA) delivers innovative and reliable on-demand printing solutions for business improvement and security applications in 100 countries around the world. More than 90 percent of Fortune 500 companies use Zebra®-brand printers. A broad range of applications benefit from Zebra-brand thermal bar code, "smart" label and receipt printers, and plastic card printers, resulting in enhanced security, increased productivity, improved quality, lower costs, and better customer service. The company has sold more than five million printers, including RFID printer/encoders and wireless mobile solutions, as well as ZebraDesigner software, ZebraLink connectivity solutions, Genuine Zebra printing supplies and ZebraCare services. Information about Zebra specialty printing solutions is at http://www.zebra.com.

Zebra Technologies Europe Ltd, headquartered in the United Kingdom, provides product and speciality label sales and support across EMEA.

About Philips Medical Systems
Philips Medical Systems is a worldwide leader in healthcare solutions Our product line includes best-in-class technologies in X-ray, ultrasound, magnetic resonance, computed tomography, nuclear medicine, PET, radiation oncology systems, patient monitoring, information management and resuscitation products.
Key competences of Philips Medical Systems are leadership in digital technology, sense and simplicity of product design, easy to use, patient comfort and easy to upgrade, providing a full range of customer services easy to adapt to any customer needs.
For more information, please visit: www.philips.it/pdllp_medical/Index.html

Contact details

For further information, please contact:
Lisa Gillingham or James Mossman at LEWIS
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7802 2626 Fax: +44 (0) 20 7802 2627
Email: lisag@lewispr.com / jamesm@lewispr.com Web: www.lewispr.com

Gabriele Sciuto / Maria Teresa Trifiletti
LEWIS Communications
Telefono: +39 02 4671 2235
Email: gabrieles@lewispr.com / mariat@lewispr.com

Technorati tags: Zebra | Philips Medical Systems | mobile printing |

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