New cataract and refractive imaging platform unveiled by Heidelberg Engineering at ESCRS
Heidelberg, Germany – Heidelberg Engineering will offer a preview of its cataract and refractive imaging platform* during this year’s Congress of the ESCRS in Barcelona. The platform
is based on an upgradable, modular design, which allows to configure each product to the specific diagnostic workflow in a practice or clinic. Main options include: IOL biometry, corneal topography/tomography, anterior segment biometry and anterior segment imaging. (more…)
Swept-source OCT: Patent License Agreement between Massachusetts General Hospital and Heidelberg Engineering
Heidelberg, Germany – Heidelberg Engineering has entered into a patent license agreement with Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in Boston. The agreement grants global and exclusive rights to 77 basic patents and patent applications which relate to swept-source OCT technology and its application in ophthalmology. (more…)
Heidelberg Engineering to relocate US Headquarters to the East Coast
Heidelberg, Germany – Heidelberg Engineering has announced to relocate its US headquarters from Carlsbad, California to Franklin, Massachusetts. The new location on the East Coast will integrate the technical support team currently operating out of Smithfield, Rhode Island and the commercial expertise within the company’s US organization. Heidelberg Engineering is committed to continuously provide best in class customer care throughout the transition of its US operations.
The new state of the art facility offers twice the size than the previous company locations together. It lays the foundation for the planned expansion of the company’s business.
“Having the entire in-house team under one roof will reinforce the growth path we are on as a global organization”, said Christoph Schoess, co-founder and Managing Director of Heidelberg Engineering.
Heidelberg Engineering celebrates its 25th anniversary with move to new high-tech building
Heidelberg, Germany –
Heidelberg Engineering is moving to the SkyLabs tower, a new emblematic building in central Heidelberg.
The company has grown significantly in the last few years and more space is now needed for the 200 Heidelberg-based employees.
Heidelberg Engineering will be moving this week to its brand-new office and laboratory building in the Bahnstadt area right next to Heidelberg’s railway station. The Bahnstadt is a new development built on the grounds of a former freight depot that combines living and cultural spaces with commercial buildings to the highest sustainability standards.
The need for more space reflects Heidelberg Engineering’s constant growth in the past few years. Since early 2014, the number of employees has increased by over 40%. Most of these employees have been hired to work in research and development.
“The proximity to scientific and research activities is vital for our company and Heidelberg is an ideal place in that sense”, said Christoph Schoess, Managing Director of Heidelberg Engineering.
Some employees had already relocated to SkyLabs a year ago. From now on all headquarter employees will be reunited in the same building. Heidelberg Engineering also owns subsidiaries in the USA, UK, and Australia, totaling 100 employees.
For 25 years, Heidelberg Engineering has been providing solutions to the fundamental diagnostic challenges in ophthalmology. The company brings together clinical, scientific and technological expertise with the goal of raising standards in diagnostic imaging.
Heidelberg Engineering Skylabs office and laboratory building (Photo: BHP Agentur für Bild und Konzept GmbH)
SPECTRALIS becomes Integral Part of Routine Practice
Hemel Hempstead, UK – Interview with Mark Holloway, optometrist practice owner from Dronfield, near Sheffield, who invested in a Heidelberg Engineering SPECTRALIS just over a year ago
Why did you decide to invest in OCT?
We were drawn to the SPECTRALIS as our first practice OCT – ease of use and the superb imaging quality of the technology. Our motivation was twofold: to better manage patients from a clinical perspective and to increase business revenue.
How has the first year been of introducing a new type of technology?
It is all about patient education! We have concentrated on ensuring that the patients know that we have this new technology and we have explained the benefits very well. We have done this via recall letters, the website and by speaking to patients within the practice. Some patients call and others come in and say “we hear you have a fancy new gadget: is it suitable for me?” – it is certainly a talking point! Our receptionists are very good and can explain the benefits whenever the opportunity arises.
About 20% of our patients are now having OCT scans but we are expecting this to grow. Most are older patients, but others with a family history of disease are receptive to the idea of having a baseline scan to file away for future reference.
Do you invest much in marketing OCT?
We used the free supply of leaflets provided by Heidelberg Engineering, and have had some more produced for use in the practice and with recall letters. Our website promotes the technology and we have included the video from Heidelberg Engineering, which shows what takes place and the resulting scans. We placed an article in the local Press and have emailed as many patients as possible. We used MailChimp analytics to see how many people opened the email and it was well above the industry standard.
How much are you charging for OCT?
We have found that when we explain the benefits of OCT the additional aspect of health checking is very well received. We are charging £35 and most people are happy with that. We have a very diverse patient demographic but there appears to be no correlation between affluence and those who choose to have the scan.
Many of our patients have health insurance and one of the local companies – Westfield Health – will pay for OCT, so patients can frequently claim the cost back depending on how they choose to utilise their allowance.
How does OCT fit into a routine eye examination?
We allocate a separate, 30 minute, appointment for OCT: this enables me to take the scan, analyse it and give the patient feedback whilst they are still with me. This means they can normally leave with peace of mind. Occasionally I need to call patients back for further scans but this is unusual.
How easy is it to read the scans – especially at the outset?
I have attended the Heidelberg Academy training sessions so have learned what to look out for, and Heidelberg Engineering are extremely good at supporting us to develop our skills within the practice – especially when we have queries on the images.
Is there an opportunity for hospital work?
We have no local protocol currently for taking on hospital work but our two nearest major eye departments – the Chesterfield Royal Hospital and the Royal Hallamshire in Sheffield both use the SPECTRALIS. When we are referring we can include copies of the scans and the departments know they can trust the technology. In the future I would like to think that patients could be discharged from the hospital and we can review them in the community.
What do you feel about OCT a year on?
The SPECTRALIS is proving to be a great way to differentiate ourselves, and patients respond well to a fairly clear message – our tagline is “Far more precision than is possible with the human eye”, and that seems to capture people’s attention. Certainly when we tell patients that we have the latest and most up to date technology they tend to go for it. Heidelberg Engineering have proved to be very good in terms of customer service, marketing support and training.
Heidelberg Engineering Academy raises the bar in OCT
Hemel Hempstead, UK – Heidelberg Engineering’s commitment to integrate the advanced eye scanning technology used by astronauts on the International Space Station into High Street practices is strengthened with several recent promotions of in-house experts.
The Heidelberg Engineering Academy is actively working to ensure seamless integration of the SPECTRALIS technology into a wide range of ophthalmic practices. Interpretation of results, building links with hospital eye departments, financial advice, patient communication and designing the patient journey are all part of the comprehensive offering.
Leading the team is Christopher Mody, (pictured right) recently promoted to Director of Clinical Services, who has more than 30 years’ of retinal imaging experience.
“The Heidelberg Engineering Academy provides access to knowledge and experience built up over 25 years of providing visionary diagnostic solutions. Our customers can draw upon this great wealth of experience via our clinical programme,” said Christopher.
Phill Ennion and Ken Binns have been appointed to the new roles of Clinical Implementation Managers, applying their SPECTRALIS experience to the Academy team, as Ken said –
“The new role will raise the bar on customer satisfaction from the initial site survey through to user training and workflow management. We ensure that there is consistency of care, with the same contact to facilitate all of their requirements.”
Emily Malbon, promoted to Marketing Communications Manager, is now in her third year with the company and praised the commitment to customer support –
“We have a highly motivated team who take great pride in an excellent product. Part of my role is to help our SPECTRALIS owners to promote the technology to their patients and to grow their businesses through the enhancement of clinical services,” she said.
Optometrists in driving seat for primary care role
Hemel Hempstead, UK –
Optometrists are in the driving seat for a major role in primary care, with the emergence of autonomous General Practitioner Federations across the country.
Due to come into effect in April 2016, the new regime for GP commissioning presents the greatest opportunity for optometrists seen in decades, believes the Heidelberg Engineering Academy. By providing support services beyond clinical education, such as marketing, financial and patient journey planning advice the Academy offers the best means of integrating OCT into the practice. (more…)
Heidelberg Engineering Awarded Exhibitor of the Year
Hemel Hempstead, UK – Exhibitor of the Year at the Royal College of Ophthalmologists’ Congress in Liverpool was Heidelberg Engineering, promoting its next generation SPECTRALIS OCT2 technology.
College President, Carrie MacEwan, awarded the shield at the congress in recognition of the company’s technology and professionalism of presentation.
Top of the agenda for many delegates was the opportunity for hands-on experience of the SPECTRALIS OCT2 Module. Bringing the next generation of diagnostic imaging, it combines an acquisition speed of 85,000Hz with Heidelberg Engineering’s proprietary TruTrack Active Eye Tracking.
“OCT2 provides excellent image quality and significantly improved acquisition speed with new applications such as OCT Angiography* set to build on the OCT2 Module,” said UK Director, Krysten Williams.
“The module is an option for all new SPECTRALIS users, as well as for existing users with an upgradeable system,” she added.
This even more powerful engine is supported by the knowledge that Heidelberg Engineering provides an expandable, upgradeable platform, which makes it a sensible option from both clinical and economic perspectives.
For those wishing to find out more about Spectralis, educational events are planned for the months ahead. Please contact us at Academy-UK@heidelbergengineering.com.
*OCT Angiography is currently under development and not for sale.
Professor Frank G. Holz, MD receives the 2015 Xtreme Research Award from Heidelberg Engineering
Heidelberg, Germany – Heidelberg Engineering’s annual 2015 Xtreme Research Award was presented to Professor Frank G. Holz, MD Chairman and Professor, Department of Ophthalmology at University of Bonn in Germany during the recent award ceremony in Denver, Colorado. Over 11,000 scientists and industry professionals were in the city for the annual Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) meeting and many gathered for the Xtreme event. (more…)
Manchester Leads Research for Screening Diabetic Neuropathy
Hemel Hempstead, UK – Diabetic neuropathy – the most common and costly complication of diabetes leading to foot ulceration and amputation in severe cases – is the subject of a major international ocular research project at the University of Manchester.
The £200k, six month project, has significant implications as nerve fibre damage is typically assessed through invasive tests, including nerve and skin biopsies. Screening for diabetic nerve damage via corneal nerves is being sponsored by Heidelberg Engineering, with clinicians using the HRT3 with Rostock Corneal Module advanced screening technology. (more…)
