With this milestone, the Hinduja Hospital joined the elite family of DryView laser imagers of an installation base of over 25,000 units worldwide. Kodak pioneered the use of dry laser imaging technology in India, having introduced dry laser equipment in 1999. The product range, the largest and most versatile in the market, has entered into the fourth generation of devices with Kodak''s sophisticated technology, knowledge and experience.

Says Dr Mohan M Nadkarni, vice-president (India cluster), health imaging division: "Our products are fourth-generation devices with sophisticated technology. Our DryView laser imagers and film have been optimised based on the input from thousands of customers around the world and we would continue to incorporate customer suggestions into our new generations of film and imagers."

The dry laser imaging technology (also know as the photothermographic technology) uses industry standard DICOM networks. Kodak Dryview laser imagers, also referred to as hard copy devices, have established a market niche in better diagnostics, treatment planning and record formulation.

With the 100^th installation of the dry technology laser imager, Kodak Health Imaging has reached a landmark in providing solutions that do away with the use of harmful chemicals and plumbing facilities to obtain superior image quality. In this technology the dry laser uses thermal energy to develop the film. The process involves a special film sensitive to laser light (for image formation) and heat (for conversion of latent image into visible image).

Says Dr Jagdish Modhe, chief radiologist, PD Hinduja National Hospital & Medical Research Centre: "The performance and reliability of DryView laser imagers has been outstanding, and the image quality has been consistently high. We believe that DryView imagers are the best available and that Kodak''s service organisation is unsurpassed."

The Kodak DryView installation at the Hinduja Hospital comprises two laser imagers, model DV8100 and DV8200, connected to the CT scan, MRI, ultrasonography, nuclear medicine and DSA facilities.

Kodak''s dry laser radiology systems offer these advantages over other contemporary technologies:

• Excellent image quality
• Reduction of processing artefacts as the processing is eliminated
• Elimination of use of wet processing chemicals, thus removing additional costs of plumbing and usage of environmentally hazardous chemicals
• Saving of up to 70,000 litres of water per annum (per machine)
• Elimination of smelly and unhealthy darkrooms and thus saving space

Kodak Health Imaging is a world leader in developing, manufacturing, and marketing intelligent imaging products from analogue to digital. Its portfolio includes computed radiography and digital radiography systems, laser imagers, picture archiving and communications systems (PACS), radiology information systems, dental imaging and services, and traditional mammography and x-ray film systems. The group, with annual revenues of $2.3 billion, has served the global health care community for more than 100 years. The group is the second-largest business within Kodak, which had sales last year of $13.2 billion.

Kodak India Ltd, a subsidiary of Eastman Kodak, was the first photographic company to set up operations in India in 1913. The health imaging division commenced operations in India in early nineties. Since then the business has grown manifold from a mere Rs 1 crore in 1992 to Rs 100 crore in 2002. Kodak Health Imaging in India has a comprehensive portfolio of image information products, services, applications and integrated systems, including the latest in x-ray films, laser films and medical laser printers for CT and MRI.