At IDS 2019 in Cologne, Germany, MOCOM stunned visitors with its new Supreme steam steriliser that features sleek lines, a built-in video screen that tutors you in how to use and maintain the system and innovative water treatment, using water from the tap and continually recycling it. The addition of the state-of-the-art Supreme steriliser compliments the existing Classic and Futura models and means MOCOM now has a solution for every budget and every application.
With three models on offer, we asked MOCOM Australia’s Jim Owen how to choose the steriliser that suits you best.
ADP: Jim, why would I buy MOCOM and which model should I choose?
JO: Firstly, when you’re looking for a new steriliser, you must ensure there is a strong service and support network in place.
Sterilisers are critical elements in the infection control chain, so if there is ever an issue, you have to make sure that it will be fixed immediately. So you need to check that before you buy, rather than when a problem occurs. MOCOM has thousands of sterilisers in use in Australia, supported through both our head office in Perth and a national support network as well as our distributor, Henry Schein. We also offer the new industry leading warranty of three years or 3000 cycles. Plus, we provide “factory” training in the maintenance and repair of our products to all our authorised service technicians on a regular basis to ensure they are always up-to-date. So we
believe our support is first class.
Once you’re satisfied with the reputation and reliability of the steriliser brand, you then need to match your needs and budget to the relevant product. MOCOM now offers the Supreme, Classic and Futura models, each in three chamber sizes and each at different price points which relate to the features available and the overall cycle time.
One of the great features about MOCOM is that all of the sterilisers in our range have a delayed start. The practical benefit of this feature is that you can program your vacuum and helix tests to start at any time of the day. For example, you can set these tests
to begin at 5am so that when you arrive at the practice, the test is finished. That’s a big time saving.
All our sterilisers also now have built-in WiFi and internet connectivity included and in the case of the Classic, you’re not going to see that with any other entry level steriliser on the market. Using this feature, you can connect the steriliser to the practice’s network and to various software packages that work with the data. All of our sterilisers also have a combined barcode and report printer in one. This allows you to print out your cycle data on thermal paper or barcoded labels to attach to instrument packs. Each machine has a user management system which allows you to allocate a PIN to each staff member so that the operator’s ID is attached to the cycle data. This is saved in the onboard memory of the steriliser and fully complies with the requirements of the standards.
And finally, another great feature common to all our machines is the built-in water conductivity sensor that measures the quality of the water you’re putting in. If water quality is poor, it can damage the machine.
ADP: If those features are the same across the Classic, Futura and Supreme, what sets these three sterilisers apart?
JO: The Classic is our entry level machine and as I just mentioned, it offers many advanced features that would normally only be found in a top-of-the-range competitor machine. To have a barcode feature, water conductivity sensor and digital technology, you’d normally be paying top dollar, yet the Classic is very competitively priced.
The Futura is the next model in our range. The most obvious difference is the 4.3 inch colour touchscreen for navigating through the user menu. Also, very importantly, the Futura was one of the first machines to ever enable tap water to be poured directly into the machine. It has an inbuilt demineralisation filter in the clean water tank. It filters the water and you no longer need to purchase bottles of distilled water. The vacuum pumps are also bigger in the Futura so the cycle times are around 5 minutes faster than the Classic. So for busy
practices, this makes a real difference.
ADP: And the new Supreme was launched at IDS last March. I must say it’s a real head turner. You couldn’t help but stop and look when you saw it on the MOCOM stand.
JO: Yes, the Supreme is completely new and is now the top-of-the-range. It features a large 7-inch colour touch screen in the centre of the door, which makes it stand out from every other steriliser on the market. The screen includes built in video tutorials on how to operate the machine, how to perform user maintenance tasks and how to use the main functions of the machine. It’s ideal for new staff members as you can simply follow the video tutorials and learn how to use the machine without having to call MOCOM or a service technician for training.
The Supreme is also the first machine on the market to introduce closed loop water technology. When you first add tap water, it passes through a demineralisation filter. Then, after each cycle, it recycles the water through a nano filter and continually reuses it. This enables you to perform 50 sterilisation cycles with only 5 litres of tap water.
The Supreme also has LED lighting that visually indicates which phase of the cycle the steriliser is in, whether it’s in standby mode or whether a cycle failed. This allows you to pop your head around the corner of the steri area and immediately know the status of the steriliser.
The Supreme also offers near field communication, so you can use issue NFC cards or wristbands to each staff member that are programmed with each person’s details, which replaces entering a PIN and minimises touch when releasing a load. In terms of printers, the Supreme additionally gives you the option of a network printer. For large practices, you can have 3 or 4 sterilisers using a single printer, which saves costs and bench space.
ADP: Is there software available that connects to the sterilisers?
JO: There are a couple of options here. The latest program is called D.I.V.A. It’s cloud-based and it allows you to monitor multiple sterilisers remotely. It’s aimed at large practices or practices with multiple locations, like corporates, as it monitors both the steriliser itself and how it’s being used. If a location has multiple sterilisers, you can see the usage pattern of each machine, the cycles being used, overall performance, error codes, whether users are entering their name against cycle data and signing it off correctly. You can also check if vacuum and helix tests are being completed, so it effectively oversees the compliance process as well.
D.I.V.A is free for a year with the MOCOM Supreme and the there is an annual licence fee for continued use. It also works with the Futura, but not the Classic. We also have software called DataSter, which is free. This sits on your PC and connects to the steriliser via WiFi and
automatically downloads cycle data as PDF files. Finally, we also offer MOCOM MyTrace. This software works with our barcode printer as an instrument tracking solution for critical instruments. If you don’t have a tracking module in your existing practice management software or a way of storing the barcode details into your practice management software, you can purchase MyTrace. Both DataSter and MyTrace work with all three models
of steriliser.
ADP: Thank you very much for your time, Jim.
