About the client
This company furnishes operating rooms all over the world. They start on site with a so-called “blank canvas”; an empty room where after their work a complete OR is delivered, ready to be used after sterilization. To pull this off, a wide range of tools is needed, but the toolkit must be designed to be as compact as possible to allow for flexibility. Because the work takes place worldwide, the toolkit is transported by bus or plane. Robustness was an absolute must here, both because of the great weight of the kit, but also because of the amount of miles it will be traveled. The advantage in this case was that Faes made the first version of the toolkit for this customer 15 years ago. Therefore, it was mainly about improved version of the old kit, so that it could last another 15 years. And it did.
Renewal of the current fleet
15 years ago a customer from the medical sector bought 25 toolkits from Faes. Meanwhile, these are in need of replacement and so they come back to The Packaging People. After all, there don’t appear to be many other companies that can offer the same thing. Similar solutions, from an of the shelf range for example, can be found in the music industry in the form of DJ cases. However, their implementation is too far standardized and therefore inadequate for the work this customer does.
The application of the toolkit
This medical company makes systems for various medical applications. The toolkit is used to install these systems around the world to set up an operating room. The engineers who do this must be self-reliant, with the toolkit they can complete the entire installation. The kit is mostly transported by plane, but it is also possible to transport them by bus. In fact, for transport within a radius of 800 km, the toolkit is hoisted with a winch in it and transported independently to the installation site. As tooling changes and working methods are adapted, the tools must be adjusted accordingly. These tools are transported in the toolkit and so it is now also in need of replacement.
Flexibility and thinking in terms of possibilities at Faes
It was clear that the toolkit was a good choice 15 years ago, so going back to Faes was a logical next step for this customer. After all, all that was needed were adjustments to make the toolkit fully up-to-date again and up to current standards. Then and now, it’s the flexibility and great ability to think in terms of possibilities that makes them enjoy working with Faes.
Three parties come together to create updated design
Thanks to running a pilot with three test cases, feedback was gathered and solutions were devised jointly with the customer’s tool supplier. A perfect interplay of three parties who thus came up with new and innovative ideas. For example, the future toolcase will be a lot lower, which was a must, thanks to size-adjustable tools that take up less space. Three parties thus worked together to come up with a completely new design, and after production the toolkit will be completely up-to-date and meet current standards.
The future with the new toolkit
The goal is that by the end of the year, the fleet of 25 kits will be completely renewed, perhaps supplemented by an additional five kits. The medical device company then hopes to be able to move forward with this for at least another 10 years, as the changes are not expected to be so drastic as to require interim adjustments. Moreover, both the customer and Faes are opting for sustainability in the choice of packaging; high-quality materials that can withstand frequent transport and intensive use, making them last for years. Which is also reflected in the lifespan of the first kit with which the collaboration once began. When the time comes, they will gladly return to Faes for their flexibility, service and customer friendliness.
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