From the August 2011 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
This report originally appeared in the July 2011 issue of DOTmed Business News
For companies like Dixie Medical, a seller of refurbished defibrillators, business is booming– its business was up by 25 percent last year. “I think that in the past certain customers that would have never considered buying refurbished products are now being forced to look at that option because of tight budgets,” says Matt Spencer, the company’s president.
Some of the most popular devices currently in demand are the Zoll AED Plus, Cardiac Science Powerheart AED 3G units and Physio-Control’s Lifepak CR Plus AED, according to Spencer.
Customers can save between 30 and 40 percent if they choose to purchase a defibrillator on the refurbished market, Spencer says.
The demand for refurbished products has even attracted some OEMs to the business. Last year, Physio-Control launched its Refurbished Equipment from the Lifesaving Innovators (RELI) program.
As many of the company’s customers are switching to the latest Lifepak 15 monitor/defibrillator, they’re trading in their Lifepak 12 models, which Physio-Control then puts through a complete factory refurbishment process.
According to Cam Pollock, the company’s vice president of global marketing, a customer can purchase a refurbished Lifepak 12 for about 25 to 35 percent less than the cost of a new Lifepack 15.
So far, the RELI program has been a hit for the company. “We’ve been selling everything we’ve got,” says Pollock.
Physio-Control plans to have all of its Lifepak products as part of the RELI program in the future.
