Siemens and Comdisco Complete Successful Beta of Digital Image Storage Solutions with University of Kentucky Hospital

Business Wire, Nov 27, 2000

Business Editors/High Tech Writers

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 27, 2000

Medical Center Realizes Improved Response Time While

Eliminating Risk and Cost of Storage Equipment Ownership

Comdisco, Inc.'s (NYSE: CDO) healthcare group and Siemens Medical Systems announced today that they have completed a successful beta test of picture archiving and communications systems (PACS) hosted storage services with the University of Kentucky Hospital, a leading academic healthcare center.

The University of Kentucky beta test was designed to demonstrate how a healthcare provider could cost effectively outsource storage access and management of digital images while maintaining or improving security of and response time to its information.

The University of Kentucky had migrated to a Siemens PACS environment four years ago and had been attempting to internally manage its quickly growing storage demands prior to testing the hosted storage solution this summer.

"With our Siemens PACS system connected to Comdisco's infrastructure, we no longer have to worry about technology obsolescence and life cycle management of very expensive storage equipment or the staffing resources to manage our storage environment," said Beth Burns, PACS administrator for the University of Kentucky Hospital. "From a service delivery perspective, the hosted storage solution has also had a positive impact as we've been able to significantly reduce the amount of time it takes for radiologists requesting an image to receive it, and this improved response time is critical because it helps us improve patient care."

The medical center's digital images are now automatically transmitted from the Siemens PACS to Comdisco's on-site Enterprise Access Device. On a real-time basis, these images are replicated via a secured network to multiple Comdisco data centers, assuring information availability through off-site redundant storage, a proactive step towards addressing HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) standards for security and continuity. "This fully integrated solution provides continuous availability and monitoring of the medical center's storage environment to optimize information access and distribution performance, " said Kulin Hemani, director, technology development at Siemens Medical Systems.

"We recognized that we needed to deploy a large redundant data repository for backup and disaster recovery of all our patient files in PACS, but we were reluctant to make such a large investment with technology changes occurring so rapidly," said James C. Reed, M.D., professor and chairman, Department of Diagnostic Radiology at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine. "The Siemens/Comdisco solution made sense. We gain access to the services and resources we need to run our business without having to worry about non-healthcare related issues like computer technology. We can retrieve the data we have stored in the remote sites whenever we want, fully transparent."

"Healthcare organizations are faced with skyrocketing demands for storage and increased regulations for how to protect patient information while at the same time they're confronted with further budget constraints and limited staff resources to deal with these issues," said Mike Kennedy, general manager of Comdisco's healthcare group. "Our collaboration with Siemens demonstrates that healthcare organizations can have an effective means for better managing their storage requirements, essentially a solution that doesn't require additional capital expenditures and reduces staffing requirements."

About Siemens

Siemens Medical Engineering Group is the largest Application Service Provider in healthcare. Already known for its innovative diagnostic and interventional systems, Siemens' recent merger with Shared Medical Systems has made it a leader in healthcare IT solutions that automate entire healthcare organizations, key processes or functions within those organizations. The company offers the most comprehensive line of information systems and services in the healthcare industry. .Through its e-solutions portfolio, Siemens enables healthcare providers to interact with mission-critical information in an integrated, scalable and reliable manner. The company has worldwide revenue exceeding $4.6 billion in fiscal 1999.

About Comdisco

Comdisco (www.comdisco.com) provides global technology services to help its customers maximize technology functionality, predictability and availability, while freeing them from the complexity of managing their technology. The Rosemont, (IL) company offers a complete suite of information technology services including business continuity, Web-Availability SM, network, and IT Control and Predictability Solutions(SM). Comdisco also offers equipment solutions to key vertical industries, including electronics, telecommunications, pharmaceutical, biotechnology and manufacturing. Through its Ventures division, Comdisco is providing equipment leasing and other financing and services to venture capital backed start-up companies. The company's revenue for the 12 months ended September 30, 2000 was $3.9 billion.