Health Robotics' Launches Embedded RFID Support for Temperature and Location Tracking, Simultaneously Moving Into the Blood/Plasma Automation Market

BOZEN, Sud-Tirol, Italy, September 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Health Robotics today announced the general availability of embedded Radio-frequency identification (RFID) for its world-leading Sterile Compounding Automation solutions i.v.STATION, i.v.SOFT, and i.v.STATION ONCO. These RFID upgrades will be showcased at the upcoming ASHP Midyear Meeting & Exhibition (American Society of Health-System Pharmacists) on December 2-6 in Las Vegas, Nevada at Booth # 853. At the same time, Health Robotics announced that it entered the Blood/Plasma Automation Industry by leveraging its unique technology benefits across the Pharmaceutical and Blood/Plasma industry sectors.

Gaspar DeViedma, Health Robotics' Executive V.P. and Board Member, stated: "I'm very pleased to announce Health Robotics' upgrade of its auto-labeling and scanning systems to automatically embed location and temperature control tracking all the way to the patient. Health Robotics' RFID solutions allow for a dramatic improvement of the safety of frozen and temperature controlled medications and blood/plasma patient doses through continuous monitoring prior to their expiration dates, including increasing the beyond-use-date for frozen and temperature-controlled medications and blood/plasma patient doses. Leveraging our world-class competitive advantages in the field of Robotics across the Life Sciences industry is the next natural step for Health Robotics, with features such as robotics accuracy, auto-labeling, and temperature and location/tracking control, similarly applying to both the Pharmaceutical and Blood/Plasma industry sectors."

Health Robotics' RFID solutions provide a wireless non-contact system that uses radio-frequency electromagnetic fields to transfer data from a tag attached to an object, for the purposes of automatic identification and tracking. The RFID tags contain rich, electronically stored information, which unlike bar-codes, do not need to be within line of sight of the reader and may be embedded in the tracked object, often resulting in faster scans, hands-free operations, massive scanning of multiple objects, and improved workflow and patient safety. Health Robotics' new and affordable RFID solutions have been developed through an exclusive cooperation with Techsigno, http://www.techsigno.com/en/home.html

Mr. DeViedma continued: "Just as an example of how these new RFID solutions work with one of our Robots, i.v.STATION can optionally embed and automatically affix an RFID tag to the IV Bag or syringe during the printing of the paper label. This is particularly useful for the growing number of Health Robotics' customers that manufacture or plan to manufacture IV Batch products that require temperature control, storage, shipping, and tracking for extended periods of time before final delivery to patients. Centralized Sterile Compounding sites are becoming much more prevalent in the Life Sciences industry as Health Systems move to in-source Sterile Compounding in light of the high cost of traditional outsourced and/or pre-mix solutions, amid the soaring healthcare expenditures and diminishing budgets."

About Health Robotics:

Founded in 2006, Health Robotics is the undisputed global leading supplier of life- critical intravenous medication robots, winning 100% of all worldwide I.V. Robot's publicly announced purchases in 2010 and 2011, and providing over 300 hospital installations in 5 continents with robotics-based technology and clinical software automation solutions. Health Robotics' world-leading solutions CytoCare® and i.v.STATION® ONCO [hazardous IVs], i.v.STATION® [non-hazardous IVs], i.v.SOFT® [workflow engine for sterile compounding], OMM® [Oncology Medication Management], MEDarchiver® [life-critical clinical information system], and TPNstation® [totally-automated parenteral nutrition] have and will greatly contribute to ease hospitals' growing pressures to improve patient safety, increase throughput and contain costs. Through the effective and efficient production of sterile, accurate, tamper-evident and ready-to-administer IVs, Health Robotics' products help hospitals eliminate life-threatening drug and diluent exchange errors, decrease other medical mistakes and sterility risks, work more efficiently, reduce waste and controlled substances' diversion, and diminish the gap between rising patient volume/acuity and scarce medical, nursing, and pharmacy staff. For more information, please visit: http://www.health-robotics.com

For additional information, please contact:

In North America: Claudia Perez
perez@health-robotics.com
Phone +1-786-417-1251

In Europe: Luisa Celeghin
celeghin@health-robotics.com
Phone: +39-0403-498-468