Novel CT power-save mode could cut nationwide CT costs by $1.5M
Using a novel power-save mode on CT scanners could help radiology providers save $1.5 million annually in energy consumption costs, according to new research published Wednesday.
Previous analyses have focused on powering down CT devices to limit utility costs and preserve the planet. Investigators with University Hospital Basel, Switzerland, recently explored the use of a “promising” new option that reduces energy consumption during brief, inter-examination idle intervals.
This mode maintains the CT system in a semi-active state during which it is ready for rapid reactivation at the time of the next patient scan. Experts note this may offer a more ideal alternative to turning off CT machines, which can be impractical for frequent yet brief periods during routine daytime workflows.
“The power save mode provides a practical sustainability strategy for nonproductive idle periods when complete system shutdowns are operationally infeasible,” radiologist Paul Hehenkamp, MD, and colleagues wrote Nov. 5 in the American Journal of Roentgenology.
University Hospital Basel researchers tested the impact of the power-save mode using a single CT scanner (the Somatom X.ceed from Siemens Healthineers, a co-author of the study). The machine was equipped with the new power-save mode, which automatically activates 5 minutes after exam completion and allows instantaneous scanner reactivation.
Hehenkamp and colleagues evaluated power measurement data over the course of 124 workdays, with it powered on for 1,253 hours. This included 425 hours in active mode, 347 hours of idling, and 481 hours in the power save state. Thus, nonproductive time accounted for about 66% of the scanner-on time while power save made up about 58% of the nonproductive period.
The average power draw was slightly lower for the power save mode (1.6±0.1 kW) when compared to the idle state (2.1±0.1 kW), the authors found. Given this difference, power save was estimated to generate a 7.2% reduction in total energy consumption and 15.6% drop in nonproductive consumption, the study estimated. For a hypothetical radiology practice, the power save mode yielded estimated energy consumption savings ranging from 3.5% to 20.7% (of extrapolated nonproductive energy consumption.
Annual energy consumption savings were approximately 1,762 metric tons of CO2 equivalent, the authors estimated. This amounted to an annual electricity cost savings of about $1,516,573 (USD) across all scanners annually in the EU. In follow-up surveys with technologists, none reported workflow disturbances nor technical issues from the power save mode.
Correction: An earlier version of this story misstated the potential savings from power-save mode. Radiology Business regrets this error.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.