With talk currently on another thread about the idea of "co-operatives", and with hope reborn at this time of year, I may as well lay down once again my own take on such matters.

Here's the scenario:- work exists to be done. When I say "work" I mean of the traditional type. That is:- fixing the kit. Repairs, and allied tasks such as inspections, etc. In the main the kit will be old stuff in the hands of vets, charity groups and folk like that. But it could be from any other source as well.

This work needs to be approached in a flexible and cost-effective way. We are not talking about bidding on contracts, big budgets (nor gouging) here. The type of customer mentioned above cannot afford "big bucks". But they simply want the kit to be fixed when need be ... and they are not too bothered about "mains on applied parts" or PM'ing to the nth degree, or stickers slapped on all over the place (if you see what I'm saying). No ... just good old fashioned repairs and maintenance as it used to be, and carried out as cheaply as possible.

So, who is going to do this work? As already hinted at I see it as a collaborative effort. A co-operative of biomeds. "Greybeards" most likely. That is, older techs (possibly - or probably - retired, or heading that way) who would like to keep their hands in now and then. Experienced blokes with a bit of time to spare, who are not in an unseemly rush to steam on to the next job. A network of kindred spirits.

So when work needs to be done on a ventilator (say), or a ventilator of a particular model or type, we call upon Good Old [...] ... I'm sure that you all get the picture.

This is another reason that I'm looking for established workshops to rent out bench-space, by the way. Not to mention always being on the scrounge for (obsolete) parts, test equipment and all the rest.

By the way, I believe that "the Bold Magee" may have had some success with this approach. So if you're tuning in, Darren:- let's be hearing from you, Mate.

The key to stuff like this is, of course, a willingness to share. As discussed before, I find this admirable trait somewhat lacking in Modern Britain. Perhaps it's a "generational" thing, now that the younger ones are conditioned to think that life is all about "me, me, me"!

Well, there is certainly work to be done; who is servicing all those Doctors' surgeries? Since I retired from the NHS, surgeries that I used to PM have asked me if I would consider continuing servicing them privately. So far I have declined due to the high cost of much medical test equipment e.g. electrical safety testers. Perhaps a central pool of test equipment could be held for part time greybeards to use. I have had no problem in hiring electrical testers from electrical supply companies including PAT when asked to test electrical equipment for Landlords. Incidentally, does anyone know of a cheap PAT tester that gives actual results rather than a tick or cross function?

Sorry Geoff I'm starting to think your not on this planet, first you don't know about NHS supplies and then you pick the most competitive area and suggest it's a great opportunity!

Alas many people have already covered this area. I did see this sort of thing a few years ago with the hand written tested labels with the biomeds mobile number on, but their getting fewer and fewer.

The first competitor you get is the sales rep that offers to service equipment for free as a loss leader to get more business. Then you have the PAT test companies that have decided to expand into medical equipment. Next is the sales companies like Williams Medical that do equipment servicing and now even Hilditch have joined in.

Next problem you've got Geoff on the GP side of things is the GP consortiums. It might have been that you could pick up the odd GP surgery but now some are banding together so basically you are talking bidding on contracts and big budgets.

There's then the strange situation that some GP surgeries are actually run by the local hospital. Usually the inner city surgeries where no GP partners in their right mind would set up a surgery.

Then you've got the problem of litigation, a charity will get sued just as much as a hospital so I've found that they will be concerned with mains on applied parts. (if anything they'll actually apply mains to yours if you offer anything less )

So I'd say that the only possibility of a opportunity out of what's been suggested is vets. But then again this is a area that biomed's have already been there and got the t-shirt! Have you thought about becoming a expat again that seems to be the real opportunity?


Ps. You'll often find that people who donate to charities like to have their picture taken with the equipment, therefore the equipment will actually be new.

Then there's the QOF points for equipment service so the GP's are getting paid if they get their equipment serviced, so they would be worried about it done properly and labelled.

You're right, Chris. I'm happy to leave all that BS to you experts!

But meanwhile ...


"Real opportunity"? Do you know something that I don't?

Well I have heard a few employees suggest doing the above but in the UK it wouldn't work. Although there must be countries that don't have the competition for this work that the UK does, if the right person got in at the development stage who knows they could become the next Williams Medical?

I have tried such work in desert clinics (and enjoyed doing so, as well) ... but "out there" they don't have so much legislation forcing kit to be tested when it doesn't need testing at all, so "fixing the kit" is all the owners of clinics (for example) were prepared to pay for (and grudgingly even then).

But (unfortunately, for those of us who used to enjoy working under such conditions), most of those positions previously the domain of Western expats are now taken by "locals", or by (cheaper) techs from nearby countries or other parts of the world.

It was good whilst it lasted. Indeed, as I believe I may have mentioned before:- in retrospect, I am surprised that it all lasted as long as it did!

Legislation is here, SFDA is one and then there is the clamor for JCI accreditation ISO and whatever number they are using these days has gone out of fashion.

Yes Neil, somehow I can't imagine that the "pioneering spirit" is so much in demand out there these days.

Not anymore, everything is done by the book!