From summer 2019, sitem-insel AG will operate the National Centre of Excellence for translational medicine on the site of the Bern Insel Hospital. The centrepieces of the scientific research have already delivered, at the beginning of April. They consist of two extra-class magnetic resonance tomographs (MRI), which were manufactured by Siemens.
Our specialists were required to install the two MRIs; the “Magnetom Prisma” and “Magnetom Terra” . After the 17 ton and 13 ton devices had been unloaded from the delivery vehicle in front of the building using an 80 ton mobile crane, they were transported by our 75 ton HUBYLIFT-75 forklift truck.
Due to the limited space available, the devices could not be attached to the anchor points provided for this purpose at the upper end of the MRI. Thanks to our project managers’ many years of experience, this challenge was also able to be overcome and the MRIs were attached to the side by means of a simple auxiliary construction at the bottom.
After being driven to the building, the MRIs, attached to the mast of the HUBYLIFT-75, had to be lowered 10 m downwards to the 2nd basement level through a 3 x 3 m floor opening (with only a few centimetres of free space). Subsequently, the devices were moved about 100 m to their final location on special undercarriages and with the help of Habeggers.
The MRIs had to be placed in such an “out-of-the-way” location for one simple reason. Appropriate safety precautions are required to use devices with high magnetic strength. With a strength of 7 teslas, the larger MRI exceeds the natural horizontal earth magnetic field by 350,000 times. To ensure that the MRIs do not disturb the delicate research environment and that they themselves are not disturbed by the surrounding environment (e.g. bus stops or other mobile metallic objects), the devices had to be installed in the lowest floor where they are shielded from magnetism, high frequencies and noise.
About sitem-insel AG
sitem-insel– the Swiss Institute for Translational and Entrepreneurial Medicine in Bern. It was created to establish, operate and develop a National Centre of Excellence that assists in the transition from research findings or prototypes to marketable products. sitem-insel AG is organised as a non-profit public-private partnership.
Special equipment
- HUBYLIFT-75
- Hi Trac
- Habegger
Team
Hansjörg, David, Reto, Thomas
Pictures & film: Lukas Pitsch proimagehub.ch