What's the oldest piece of kit that you look after? - I've just ppm'd a light source that was purchased in 1987!

When I was in uniform we used to look after Picker field x-ray sets that dated back to the Korean War. So it should come as no surprise that when I got a couple out of their boxes and ran them up (this would have been in 1980, or thereabouts), I found that they had soft tubes, and were therefore useless. In fact we ended up condemning the lot of them (can't tell you how many - it's probably still a Big Secret)!

Nebulisers - I seen a few that are as old as 16 years old and a few are still working! Mind you, any neb over 10 years old needing repair gets condemned.

Until recently we had a Lifepak 10 defib of 1990 vintage in use here!

Cambridge Camtrace ECG monitors born 1979 still alive and bleeping. DD

Old fashioned Roberts suction pump with glass collection jar from God knows when.

A few years ago, my colleague unearthed from a cupboard in the Theatres a 1950s vintage cauterisation iron set! It went straight to the medical museum!

1980 Eschmann urology table, still in great shape - it only works every time!

Well, if we're going to talk operating tables, I know where there's a Matburn Model M (circa. 1978) still in use at a well-known London hospital. Also in fine shape, especially after I'd PM'd it!

Whilst at GOSH a few years ago the infection people wanted us to replace the paed neuro operating chair as the padding was taped up. It is a very specialist piece of kit where the patient sits in the chair and the surgeon sits behind them and cuts the top of their head off. But the chair was a special small one for kids.
Needless to say no-one makes such specialist kit.
We hunted around and found a plate saying that this was made as a special one off in the 50s. Pre CE marking so you could do that.
I presume it is still in use as no company was prepared to make a special one in todays well regulated market - at a sensible cost.
Robert

We still look after a Dawe Sound level meter Model 1405C - circa 1973 (still accurate too!) & a Matburn VP12 Suction machine, circa 1977.
If they still do the job, why replace them ?
Thankfully, replacement criteria (age) applies to equipment - not the Engineers / techs who look after it!