Pneumatic Tube Systems (Air Tubes)
Pneumatic Air Tubes
From Wikipedia...
While they are commonly used for small parcels and documents - now most often used as cash carriers at banks, pharmacies, medical institutions, hospitals or supermarkets - they were originally proposed in the early 1800s for transport of heavy freight.
The technology is still used on a smaller scale. While its use for communicating information has been completely superseded by electronic systems, pneumatic tubes are still widely used for transporting small objects in healthcare, such as medical supplies, equipment, lab work and medications/drugs, or where convenience and speed in a local environment is useful.
In the United States, a large number of drive-up banks use pneumatic tubes to transport cash and documents between cars and tellers. Most hospitals have a computer-controlled pneumatic tube system to deliver drugs, documents and specimens to and from laboratories, pharmacy and nurses' stations. Many retail pharmacies use pneumatic airtubes to deliver convenient service (drive throughs) to patients who have difficulty picking up their prescriptions. Many factories use them to deliver parts quickly across large campuses. Many larger stores use systems to securely transport excess cash from checkout stands to back offices, and to send change back to cashiers.
Modern systems (for smaller, i.e. "normal" tube diameters as used in the transport of small capsules) reach speeds of around 7.5 m (25 ft) per second, though some historical systems already achieved speeds of 10 m (33 ft) per second. Further, modern systems can also be computer-controlled, allowing, among other things, the tracking of any specific capsule. Varying air pressures also allow capsules to brake slowly, removing the jarring arrival that used to characterize earlier systems and make them unsuitable for fragile contents.
Offering quality and efficient custom solutions for pneumatic tube systems, Air Link has fitted more than 20,000 systems worldwide in over 10 countries. A family owned and operated company; Air Link designs and manufactures its own system components. Today, Air Link provides the ideal tube system solution for the quick and easy transport of sensitive goods to the medical industry.Pevco
Pevco designs, manufactures, installs and supports hospital pneumatic tube systems. Trusted by leading healthcare facilities, our systems quickly, safely and reliably deliver patient-critical materials between labs, pharmacies, ORs, ERs and nurses’ stations. And because Pevco pneumatic tube systems are designed with flexibility in mind, they can grow and change as a hospital does.Pneumatic Carriers
We manufacture carriers used in hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies. These carriers are very well constructed and are designed to offer longevity through continuous usage.Swisslog TransLogic
Swisslog is the world leading provider of pneumatic tube systems. Our pneumatic tube systems enable fast and secure on-demand automated light unit load material transport. Our tube systems are designed for the special needs of healthcare, but are also applied to industrial, commercial and retail and distribution applications. We manufacture a variety of tube systems designed for the global needs in a variety of industries.
Market Buzz
Pevco Customer wins ASHE Vista Award for Best New Hospital Construction
Pevco, a U.S. manufacturer of pneumatic tube systems for hospitals, is pleased to announce that one of its customers has been awarded the 2014 Vista Award for Best New Hospital Construction by the American Society for Healthcare Engineering (ASHE).
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