February 2007 

neo-capsul WINS, 2007 iF Design Award

ParAid Medical Systems' innovative neo-capsul and neo-restraint for the safe transportation of newborn babies have just won a 2007 iF product design award.

Recognised the world over for more than 50 years, the International Forum of Design (iF) attracts over 2000 entries from 37 countries each year and so winning such an award is a significant accolade.

ParAid's director Philip Hopkins is delighted with the company's achievement, "This is a prestigious award for us and a recognition of outstanding design and commitment to innovation which is very rewarding after our long product development programme to bring these products to market"

For ParAid this is the culmination of some three years research and development in conjunction with the product design team Lightweight Medical which specialise in healthcare products. ParAid has invested nearly a £1/4 million in the project. backed up with a furthur £90,000 SPUR grant.

The neo-capsul and neo-restraint innovations have already attracted a great deal of interest in neonatal circles following their introduction and launch at key neonatal shows and conferences including Medica exhibition in Dusseldorf last year.

The neo-capsul and neo-restraint combination represents the first safety conscious method available for the transportation by vehicle or air of newborn babies. The neo-capsul is a double skinned clear acrylic module and neo-restraint is the close proximity safety harness incorporating mattress, straps and foam wedges and retrofit locator bars.
Both products are designed to meet the specific enviromental requirements of a neo-natal hospital transfer namely high sound levels, vibration and strong braking forces.

The neo-capsul has a lightweight aluminium space frame which encases the infant in the double skinned clear acrylic module that allows medical teams visibilty and easy access to the baby for monitoring and treatment during journey. The shape provides stability and the double skinning enables sound levels and vibration in the module to be reduced significantly, decreasing the potential distress for the baby during transportation.

ParAid's neo-restraint is fitted with carbon fibre restraint bars. These run alongside a dual density foam mattress which has a softer head section to dampen vibration. Six dual density foam wedges can be configured in any position along the bars. Cotton straps pass over each pair of foam wedges resulting in a soft, yet rigid structure, which can accommodate any size of neonate in any position and exert minimal pressure on their fragile frame. The whole system reduces the potentially harmful effects of vibration and can restrain a 500g to 5kg baby safely and comfortably.