BRUSSELS – 3 October 2012 – COCIR, the European trade association for the medical technology industry, today published its Self-Regulatory Initiative (SRI) Status Report for 2011. Building on previous work on ultrasound equipment, COCIR is focusing this year on a second modality, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), as part of its continuing efforts to support green technology through its SRI.

Since the SRI was launched in 2008, COCIR’s member companies have been collectively establishing new ecodesign criteria and ambitious energy efficiency targets for medical imaging equipment. The 2011 Status Report includes results on ultrasound as well as the description of a more mature methodology being used for MRI, which will also be applied to other future modalities. Progress made in these areas will continue to be reported on an annual basis.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technology that uses radio waves and a powerful magnetic field to create detailed images of organs and tissues. MRI has proven to be highly effective in diagnosing a number of conditions by showing the difference between normal and diseased soft tissues of the body.

“Since 2008 COCIR has worked closely with the European Commission and the Ecodesign Consultation Forum  Members, with whom we have annually shared our results” said Nicole Denjoy, COCIR Secretary General. “It is a great initiative through which COCIR companies have collectively committed, despite increasingly complex medical equipment bringing more benefits to citizens, to maintain or slightly decrease the energy consumption of MRI equipment over the next five years, thereby reducing the industry’s carbon emissions.”

Recognising that increasing functionalities of medical devices deliver improved diagnostic tools but also involves higher energy consumption, COCIR members are proactively using technologies that by 2017 could potentially result in annual savings of up to 7.5 MWh per unit sold, savings equivalent to more than 2.55 tonnes of CO2 per unit.

The SRI documentation and the 2011 Status Report are freely available for download on the COCIR website at www.cocir.org

Note : Article 18 of the Ecodesign Directive (2009/125/EC) establishes a "Consultation Forum" (CF) which allows stakeholders to be informed and consulted on the implementation of the Directive. The Forum is limited to 60 members, including 27 representatives of EU Member States, three representatives of EEA Member States and 30 stakeholders (selected by the EC following an open call for interest).

For more information contact:


Nicole Denjoy
COCIR Secretary General     
Tel: +32 (0)2 706 8961
denjoy@cocir.org

Kathryn Sheridan
COCIR Communications Advisor
Tel: +32 (0)496 116198
press@cocir.org

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