The One Partner Every Medical Equipment Planning Group Should Have

Building a healthcare facility takes time and money. But careful planning by the right team with the right tools can provide savings to both.

As medical technology grows more complex, so does the planning and building of a medical facility. That's why persons involved in medical facility and equipment planning can benefit from the building information modeling (BIM) program.

According to this Health Facilities Management article, BIM is "a method of digital design that allows knowledge-sharing among the design team, contractor, and hospital throughout the design and construction process." It is a digitally designed model that produces spatial and informational representations of all aspects--drawings, models, schedules, reports, and projections--of a building project. It allows all parties from planning through building phases to view, adjust and share forecasted and real time information as the project proceeds.

BIM allows for all members of planning, design, construction, and supply teams to be on the same literal page, one model that all members can access and collaborate on. They can "see" the models virtually as each phase develops and so adjust the model as work progresses. How so? By capturing content and time.

Content:

• BIM has huge data storage capabilities for all hospital building needs from equipment maintenance schedules to service history and safety recalls, to name a few.
  
• All spatial, size, weight and manufacturer's requirements can be supplied.
• 3D projections show equipment layout in the design phase and so planners and hospital personnel can visualize and virtually "walk" through the planned space anywhere in the medical facility.

Time:

• 4D projections track equipment installation phase schedules and delivery dates, incorporating software from third party deliverers. The aforementioned article goes on to say, "Four-dimensional BIM also allows the medical equipment planner to ensure adequate off-site storage space and coordination of just-in-time deliveries of equipment to the construction site."
• 5D projections add the cost factors into the planning mix to help track medical equipment procurement costs compared to budgetary projections for the current project and future projections as well.
• 6D projections help conceive the future needs of the building with life-cycle projections and may supply operational tools such as user manuals.

BIM can be a critical tool for architectural, engineering and construction teams. It's especially important to your project that a knowledgeable equipment supplier knows BIM and can address all phases of your new construction project.

This is where CME Corp comes into play. We have a full staff of equipment specialists who understand total cost of ownership (TCO) and have the product, industry, and logistics experience and expertise to see your project to completion in a streamlined and cost-effective manner.

We are your first rate partners that can help you procure the right equipment at the right cost and then further help with the logistics and equipment maintenance so that your building projects can stay on budget and open on time.

For more information on how our equipment specialists can partner with you in the use of BIM for your upcoming building project, contact us here or call us at 800-338-2372. 

About CME: CME Corp is the nation’s premier source for healthcare equipment, turnkey logistics, and biomedical services, representing 2 million+ products from more than 2,000 manufacturers.

With two corporate offices and 35+ service centers, our mission is to help healthcare facilities nationwide reduce the cost of the equipment they purchase, make their equipment specification, delivery, installation, and maintenance processes more efficient, and help them seamlessly launch, renovate and expand on schedule.