The Evolution of MES
The MES services platform was first created in the United Kingdom over twenty five years ago to address the conflicting stresses experienced by hospitals which were facing severe capital constraints limiting their ability to service, refresh and upgrade medical imaging equipment, while being pressured to advance patient care with the latest imaging diagnostic technologies.
Moving from conventional procurement options to a structurally distinct "services" platform created additional profit margins and business benefits for imaging equipment manufactures which could be shared with hospitals. The results were substantial. Tangible benefits included additional cost savings on capital equipment in comparison to existing procurement practices and annual operating cost savings which usually exceeded the capital cost benefits. Intangible benefits included the certainty of hospitals having the most up to date equipment that was uniformly serviced, refreshed, upgraded and replaced over a long term. The benefits in patient care were measurable and immediate.
The United States has become one of the epicenters of MES globally. From the first major MES transaction in North America, completed in 2012 in Ontario, over 20 MES transactions have been completed in the United States to the end of 2021. These transactions are of an order of magnitude similar to the average transaction in the United Kingdom, but with the expansion of the MES platform to technology and a broader range of medical equipment outside of the traditional focus on imaging equipment.
Moving from conventional procurement options to a structurally distinct "services" platform created additional profit margins and business benefits for imaging equipment manufactures which could be shared with hospitals. The results were substantial. Tangible benefits included additional cost savings on capital equipment in comparison to existing procurement practices and annual operating cost savings which usually exceeded the capital cost benefits. Intangible benefits included the certainty of hospitals having the most up to date equipment that was uniformly serviced, refreshed, upgraded and replaced over a long term. The benefits in patient care were measurable and immediate.
The United States has become one of the epicenters of MES globally. From the first major MES transaction in North America, completed in 2012 in Ontario, over 20 MES transactions have been completed in the United States to the end of 2021. These transactions are of an order of magnitude similar to the average transaction in the United Kingdom, but with the expansion of the MES platform to technology and a broader range of medical equipment outside of the traditional focus on imaging equipment.