Shimadzu Medical Systems

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Roberta Speyer:  “Hello, this is Roberta Speyer from OBGYN.net, and I’m here today at the Radiological Society of North America meeting in Chicago in 2000.  I’m speaking with Mr. Shibata from Shimadzu.  Mr. Shibata, what’s your job at Shimadzu?”

Mr.Shibata: “My job is Project Manager; Ultrasound Research and Development Product Manager in the United States. I am NOT a marketing person.”

Roberta Speyer:  “So you help develop some of these systems that the obstetricians and gynecologists watching may select to purchase for their offices.”

Mr.Shibata:  “I am responsible for innovations of our Ultrasound products for the USA market.”

Roberta Speyer:  “What types of new technologies and things are important in the U.S. market?  Do you have some equipment here or new innovations for obstetricians and gynecologists that perhaps you could tell us about?”

Mr.Shibata:  “Shimadzu is a major provider of Ultrasound equipment for OB/GYN.  We specialize in implementing high-level technologies in an easier to use, higher performance platform.  3-D and Color flow imaging is our newest offering in this area.”

Roberta Speyer:  “Tell us a little bit about the 3-D imaging and what you’ve got coming up on the horizon in that front.”

Mr.Shibata:  “Yes, we have some 3-D technologies but this is not complex it’s just scanning on real-time and so we reconstruct the image for the user.”

Roberta Speyer:  “Is this easier?  I know some people are afraid that 3-D ultrasound scanning techniques are more difficult than traditional 2-D scanning techniques, and I think that worries them as far as how they can integrate that into their office.  How easy is it to do the 3-D scanning?  How do you acquire the images?”

Mr.Shibata:  “The 3-D software is integrated in to our systems. It can be operated either free hand or with a sensor.  Our implementation makes it very user friendly and simple to operate.”

Roberta Speyer:  “Is it more difficult than 2-D scanning?”

Mr.Shibata:  “I don’t think so.”

Roberta Speyer:  “With your equipment, what is the one message you would want obstetricians and gynecologists to consider when they’re making a purchase of new ultrasound equipment for their office or facility?  Why Shimadzu - why should they consider your equipment as the choice?”

Mr.Shibata: “Shimadzu is already a market leader in OB/GYN Ultrasound.  We are well regarded for our image quality, reliability and advanced applications software.  We are continuing that legacy by bringing Color flow and 3-D to OB/GYN in top quality products that offer simplified, semi-automated operation designed specifically for OB/GYN physician users”.

Roberta Speyer:  “Thank you very much, Mr. Shibata.”