Sheffield-based B.Braun Medical has been named preferred bidder for a second, multi-million pound NHS contract to help reduce the risk of infection in operating theatres. The company will be working in a joint venture with eight Hospital Trusts in the Birmingham area to bring the decontamination of surgical instruments up to the latest European standards.
The contract will run for a minimum of 15 years and could be extended for a further five. It will see the centralisation of decontamination services in the West Midlands into two, state-of-the-art facilities handling surgical instruments from ten hospitals.
B.Braun will invest over £10 million towards the conversion of an industrial unit at Kings Norton and the refurbishment of an existing sterile services department at Heartlands Hospital, Yardley Green.
Jonathan Byrd, business development director for B.Braun, said: “We are looking forward to working in partnership with all eight Birmingham NHS Trusts in a very exciting project which matches our core business goal of putting patient and staff safety first.
“We will be working closely with existing staff and unions to ensure continuity of service while these major improvements are carried out.”
The new decontamination centres will utilise the latest processing technologies and incorporate some of the most modern systems for tracking surgical instruments throughout their life cycle, from purchase to eventual disposal.
