Cover story - advertising feature
Shaping the future of endoscope reprocessing
In October 2025, Wassenburg Medical marked a significant moment in its history with the passing of its founder, Gerrit Wassenburg. Having driven decades of innovation, the company remains true to his founding promise of delivering “a safe endoscope for every patient”.
A pioneering engineer and entrepreneur, Gerrit Wassenburg was widely recognised as a visionary whose innovations reshaped the field of automated endoscope reprocessing and strengthened global patient safety standards. His life’s work was driven by a deep commitment to improving healthcare outcomes, and his influence continues to be felt across hospitals, decontamination units and diagnostic services worldwide. His guiding principle - to provide “a safe endoscope for every patient” - became the cornerstone of Wassenburg Medical’s identity and remains deeply embedded in the company’s culture more than four decades later. In 1984, driven by this belief, Gerrit founded
Wassenburg Medical and designed one of the first Automated Endoscope Washer-Disinfectors (AERs). His concept was transformative: instead of relying on manual flushing and soaking, he introduced a fully automated system in which each endoscope channel was individually
www.clinicalservicesjournal.com Volume 25 I Issue 3 I March 2026
THE CLINICAL SERVICES JOURNAL
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Ambitious National Cancer Plan unveiled Sustainable decontamination in the spotlight
Arno and Ronald Wassenburg
connected, washed, disinfected and monitored. This patented, data-driven approach ensured that every internal lumen received the correct flow of detergent and disinfectant under controlled, validated conditions - laying the foundation for modern automated endoscope reprocessing. The early years of Wassenburg Medical
were those of a small, family-led enterprise in
the Netherlands, driven by Gerrit’s hands-on involvement in design, engineering and close engagement with customers. The company’s initial AER models quickly attracted interest from hospitals seeking greater consistency and reproducibility in their reprocessing workflows. Clinicians and decontamination professionals recognised that automation offered not only improved reliability but also a pathway towards alignment with emerging guidelines and standards. As awareness of infection prevention
grew internationally, demand for automated systems increased. Wassenburg expanded its portfolio, refining designs, improving usability and incorporating valuable feedback from end users. The company invested in research and development to ensure that each new generation of equipment addressed both technical performance and the practical realities of busy healthcare environments. By the late 1990s and early 2000s, Wassenburg Medical had begun its transition from a regional innovator into a widely recognised specialist within the European endoscope reprocessing landscape. Operations expanded beyond the Netherlands into several key European markets, supported by a growing network of partners and distributors. Throughout this phase of expansion, the company continued to prioritise
Wassenburg Workshop (circa 1984) 6
www.clinicalservicesjournal.com I March 2026
Wassenburg Fully Automated EWD (circa 1984)
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