EQUIPMENT STORAGE


and has a width of 800 mm. The unit loads from the front, and is ideal for Emergency Departments’ storage of trolleys and stretchers.


Case Study – Kettering General Hospital All hospitals need to deal with occasions where ‘surge capacity’, or the ability to manage a sudden influx of patients, is put to the test. However, in the case of Kettering General Hospital, a 600-bed hospital that serves a dense and steadily growing population in Kettering, North Northamptonshire, heavy demand and strained resources are more the rule than the exception. The hospital’s Interim head of Facilities


said: “Kettering General Hospital’s surge is every day. Flu season only adds to the strain on resources and space. Extra beds need to be available at a moment’s notice. The problem is what to do with all those beds in the moments when they’re not needed. Bed storage issues really have been a challenge.” Like many hospitals, Kettering General’s


answer used to be cramming unused beds wherever they’d fit in crowded corridors and hallways throughout the building. However, that can be risky, particularly in a heavily regulated industry where spot inspections and strict rules on access and patient transport are commonplace. Kettering General found a new answer through Medescon in the Vidir Bedlift, a storage solution designed to securely stack hospital beds off the floor in a vertical arrangement. The Interim head of Facilities explained: “We have a 20-bed system, and that immediately freed up more storage space.”


‘Last in, last out’ principle The Vidir Bedlift uses a LIFO – ‘last in, first out’ – system that can be operated by a single person at the push of a button. Options include adapter inserts that allow storage of narrow stretchers, along with full-sized beds with bed charging facilities. Vidir serves other sectors with vertical storage, but in the case of the Vidir Bedlift, there is an added benefit in


Model Height Width


knowing that the product is helping to save lives and help cure the sick. Kettering General’s Facilities team said: “The bedlift stacker system has solved a big problem. Whenever you can solve a problem in healthcare, it’s a major positive. The alternative would have been the hospital beds that were causing us the issues still be sitting in corridors”. The space-saving system has made it


easier for the hospital to have the right number of beds available for patient use at any given moment, without clogging hallways. It has also saved Kettering General’s Operations team from agonising over whether to get rid of older, but still usable, beds just to save space.


Over 70 years’ shared experience Leicestershire-based Medescon is the exclusive UK distributor for Vidir Vertical Storage Solutions Inc, and supplies NHS Trusts with vertical hospital bed storage solutions across the UK, Ireland, and Hong Kong. We have over 70 years’ shared experience working with the NHS and hospitals across the globe. The Canadian system, created by Vidir, was originally designed to store snowmobiles, with the vertical style of storage lending itself perfectly to anywhere where space is limited. The idea for hospital beds developed from the North American issue of meeting fire and safety regulations. Vidir is a leading manufacturer and worldwide supplier of automated storage. At Medescon, we offer a bespoke


service from start to finish. Although we are installing the same kit, the hospital and its requirements are always unique. Our team includes an Estimating Department who will carry out a site visit to assess the space available, which then determines whether a 3, 4, or 5-bed system will fit in the bedspace ‘envelope’. Drawings are then created detailing the various bed storage options. Our Operations team deals with everything from shipping from Canada across to the UK, and transportation to the designated hospital, to communications throughout the project, health and safety aspects,


Depth


ST327-45R 2438 mm 1372 mm 3048 mm ST427-45R 3124 mm 1372 mm 3048 mm ST527-45R 3810 mm 1372 mm 3048 mm ST233-45X 2210 mm 1372 mm 2794 mm ST333-45X 2896 mm 1372 mm 3048 mm ST433-45X 3734 mm 1372 mm 3048 mm ST327-96S 2464 mm 2667 mm 1397 mm ST427-96S 3150 mm 2667 mm 1397 mm ST327-32N 2438 mm 1016 mm 3048 mm ST427-32N 3124 mm 1016 mm 3048 mm ST527-32N 3810 mm 1016 mm 3048 mm ST240-40C 2438 mm 1219 mm 2057 mm ST340-40C 3429 mm 1219 mm 2057 mm


Table 1: Dimensions of the Vidir bedlift stackers. 66 Health Estate Journal March 2023


4 5 2 3 4 3 4 3 4 5 2 3


660 mm 660 mm 660 mm 813 mm 813 mm 813 mm 660 mm 660 mm 660 mm 660 mm 660 mm 990 mm 990 mm


1130 mm 1130 mm 1130 mm 1130 mm 1130 mm 1130 mm 1130 mm 1130 mm


Rachael Pickering


Rachael Pickering, head of Operations for Medescon, took up the role in 2016. Her previous experience was within the construction industry, where she focused predominantly on health and safety, and project management. She said: “My role within the company is very rewarding. Being able to actually make a difference and help a hospital run more effectively, while protecting valuable assets and staff from manual handling injuries, is very satisfying. Every hospital I am in contact with gets excited about the bedlift stacker concept. I hope that with standards improving, and new hospitals being built, one day all hospitals will have this system installed to ensure that good storage and protection of hospital beds is put first.”


training, and managing the annual planned preventative maintenance. Our team of engineers, meanwhile, carefully assembles the bedlift parts piece by piece, and installs the system on site, ensuring the minimum disturbance to hospital activities. We all work together as one team to ensure that we meet the needs of our NHS Trust customers, and that the Vidir Vertical bed storage systems give many years of reliable service.


Positions Bed Height Bed Width Bed Length Bed Weight Load Position 3


2413 mm 2413 mm 2413 mm 2413 mm 2413 mm 2413 mm 2413 mm 2413 mm


800 mm 2413 mm 800 mm 2413 mm 800 mm 2413 mm 991 mm 991 mm


1905 mm 1905 mm


272 kg 272 kg 272 kg 408 kg 408 kg 408 kg 272 kg 272 kg 272 kg 272 kg 272 kg 272 kg 272 kg


Front Front Front Front Front Front


Side load Side load Front Front Front Front Front


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