RapidHeat HVHA vs Steam Sterilizer Cost Comparison
RapidHeat – A Revolutionary Advancement in Thermal Sterilization
This technology evolved from NASA’s early research to discover the best efficacious and non-destructive decontamination technology for spacecraft.
RapidHeat offers healthcare providers a faster, waterless, chemical free, low maintenance alternative in the sterile processing of medical and dental instruments.
RapidHeat sterilization technology utilizes an advanced proprietary form of circulating “High-Velocity Hot Air” (HVHA) in a sealed chamber at the rate of 200-300 air exchanges per minute. Due to the uniform distribution of HVHA, a RapidHeat sterilizer can process wrapped or unwrapped medical and dental instrumentation with greater efficiency in as little as 6-12 minutes to achieve a 12-Log spore kill. To accommodate the processing of temperature-sensitive items, RapidHeat sterilization technology has been recently advanced to incorporate “Low-Temperature” sterilization cycles with processing times equivalent to steam sterilizers.
Comparing Steam & RapidHeat™ Sterilization
Annual Operating Cost
TABLE ONE – Annual Operating Cost @ 10 Cycles Per Day
| Cost Description | RH Pro11 @320°F | RH Pro11 @375°F | Midmark M11 |
| Sterilizer Preventative Maintenance | $200 | $200 | $2,000 |
| Sterilizer Corrective Maintenance | $200 | $200 | $1,000 |
| Sterilization Pouches | $2,900 | $6,000 | $2,400 |
| Utilities | $100 | $100 | $700 |
| Instrument Replacement | $ -0- | $ -0- | $1,500 |
| Total Annual Operating Cost | $3,400 | $6,500 | $7,600 |
TABLE TWO – Annual Operating Cost @ 15 Cycles Per Day
| Cost Description | RH Pro11 @320°F | RH Pro11 @375°F | Midmark M11 |
| Sterilizer Preventative Maintenance | $200 | $200 | $3,000 |
| Sterilizer Corrective Maintenance | $200 | $200 | $1,500 |
| Sterilization Pouches | $4,300 | $9,000 | $3,600 |
| Utilities | $200 | $200 | $1,100 |
| Additional Sterilizer Investment | $ -0- | $ -0- | $1,200 |
| Instrument Replacement | $ -0- | $ -0- | $2,300 |
| Total Annual Operating Cost | $4,900 | $9,600 | $12,700 |
Assumptions:
This study compares the annual (200 working day) operating costs of a RapidHeat™ Pro11 sterilizer and a Midmark M11 steam sterilizer processing pouched instrument loads at their prescribed cycle times: RH Pro11 – 21 minutes @ 375°F and 42 minutes @ 320°F, and Midmark M11 – 52 minutes @ 270°F. Each cycle load contains 120 pouched instruments (10 instruments per pouch).
Table One, at 10 cycles per 8-hour working day, is within the capability of a single RapidHeat and Midmark sterilizer. Table Two, at 15 cycles per day, can be processed in a single RapidHeat Pro11 sterilizer due to its greater tray capacity—4 large trays versus only 2 large and 2 small trays in the M11. To complete 15 cycles in an 8-hour working day, an additional M11 sterilizer operating at 270°F would be required.
1) Preventative Maintenance — The time cost ($25.00/hr) of end-user staff performing routine sterilizer maintenance at intervals recommended by the manufacturer IFUs.
2) Corrective Maintenance — The cost of engaging service contractors or the sterilizer manufacturer to provide technical service correcting sterilizer failures – based on an estimated average from a survey of steam sterilizer service contractors.
3) Sterilization Pouches — The cost of FDA-cleared instrument pouches required by the CDC/ADA to sterilize dental instrumentation. Dry-heat nylon pouches are used in the Pro11 sterilizers operating at 375°F cycles, and steam sterilization pouches* are used in the M11 sterilizer and the Pro11 sterilizer when operating at 320°F cycles. In this study, twelve pouches are used for each sterilizer cycle. The steam sterilization annual pouch cost used in the Pro11 operating at 320°F cycles is higher than that of an M11 due to the added expense of applying dry heat indicator sticker labels to the steam sterilizer pouch typically used in steam cycles.
4) Utilities — Average annual costs from an independent study of distilled water for steam generation and electrical power.
5) Additional Sterilizer Investment — Table Two shows the rounded cost of an additional M11 at $8,500, amortized over an assumed average life of 7 years.
6) Instrument Replacement — Represents a conservative annual cost from a survey of practices of their annual instrument replacement costs related to corrosion, pitting, or staining that would have been caused by repeated steam sterilization.
*If a practice chooses to use the Pro11’s “Lo-Temp” 320°F – 42-minute cycle for pouched loads, the required nylon pouches required for the “Hi-Temp” 375° F. default cycles can be replaced with steam sterilizer pouches that have been validated and compatible with the Pro11.