The role demands an intense focus on the smallest details, ensuring ventilators work within the finest of margins to offer young patients the best chance of a healthy life.
“They are so tiny,” says Patel to Professional Engineering. “You have to make sure that you don't over deliver the pressure, don't over deliver the volume, and still provide the support that they need.”
Quality of the machines is paramount, with no room for error. The mostly premature babies sometimes cannot breathe at all without assistance, so systems that manage the ventilation, duration, and air-oxygen mix must have the absolute highest reliability.
“It's my job to ensure that every product, accessory, and piece of equipment that we sell commercially is up to the right standards,” says Patel. “Our users are medical professionals working with some of the most vulnerable infants, and we can’t afford to get things wrong.”
With such intense focus on quality, consistency and reliability, Croydon firm SLE cannot afford to sit back. Its engineers have previously attended IMechE training courses on root cause analysis and measurement systems, and Patel most recently took part in a ‘yellow belt’ Six Sigma course as part of her CPD, along with 10 colleagues.
The two-day course in London is one of over 200 offered by the IMechE, covering topics from leadership and management to product lifecycle, railway engineering to thermofluids.
For Patel, it has had a hugely positive impact on her vital work – so much so that she advocates for others to take it in the IMechE Verified by an Engineer initiative, which demonstrates that real engineers have benefited from courses in their everyday work.
Apeksha Patel
Supporting recovery
Patel’s journey within SLE started 15 years ago, when she moved to the UK from Gujarat in western India. Having studied electronics engineering, she secured a job as assembly engineer. Within a couple of years, she was promoted to test engineer, calibrating devices and carrying out final quality checks. A promotion to technical services engineer came after, followed by another to product evaluation lead, and eventually to verification and validation manager.
Her focus is on the design and development phases, including software and hardware in all products throughout SLE and its owner Inspiration Healthcare. Most of her work is on the SLE range of neonatal ventilators, from the 1000 to the most advanced 6000 model, which includes various modes of neonatal ventilation. Features include volume targeted ventilation, non-invasive ventilation and high flow oxygen therapy, reducing the risk of complications and providing support for recovery.
New software, hardware and accessories need thorough testing before release, ensuring complex, critical systems work together following integration.
“The quality of what we deliver to end users is extremely important,” says Patel. “We have to ensure every requirement and every risk is tested, all the standards that are applicable to the specific device… We have to ensure that they are met, and attention to detail is maintained throughout verification activities. Then the other aspect is validation, to make sure that this device, the software or hardware, is going to meet end user expectations.”
Problem statements
With a focus on eliminating the causes of defects and minimising variability in the process, the IMechE Six Sigma course was a natural fit for SLE. Thanks to an “energetic, supportive” trainer and a focus on direct application of learning to a real project, Patel says it brought many improvements to her and her colleagues’ work.
Process improvement activities for consistent output, elimination of waste and improved product quality resulted in improved business performance, she says, including a £60,000 saving – meaning the course paid for itself several times over.
The course also revealed that the team had allowed some ambiguous ‘problem statements’ to seep in, meaning they sometimes jumped to solutions and solved the wrong problem. As a result of the training, the engineers removed assumptions and focused more on repeatability and accuracy, improving their relationship with developers.
“I feel more confident, including with my manager,” says Patel. “The good thing about Six Sigma is all the tools that it provides. Process mapping and the DMAIC process can be useful for every little task that you do… You can apply it throughout the job.”
After such a positive experience, Patel now hopes to one day become a Six Sigma ‘black belt’. For now, her focus is on becoming chartered and developing her skills as a strategic manager.
The life-saving importance of her work requires constant evaluation of performance, but it also makes it incredibly rewarding. “It has a huge, positive impact on so many lives,” she says. “That's the whole reason I have been working for 14 years and not looking for anywhere else. That's the biggest, biggest thing – the positive impact on tiny little babies.”
For more information about IMechE training, including in-person and virtual courses, coaching and company solutions, visit the IMechE training page.
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Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.