The coronavirus crisis has emphasised the need for integrated and flexible healthcare provision. The NHS is an extremely well-integrated organisation, which under normal circumstances, provides excellent healthcare to the nation. However, in the current circumstances there is a need for greater flexibility in the deployment of resources for specific needs. An example is the creation of the Nightingale Hospitals at several locations throughout the country. However, modern healthcare practice relies heavily on the use of medical imaging techniques (e.g. CT and MRI) to achieve effective diagnosis. Prior to the coronavirus crisis, the requirement for additional imaging capability has been met by the introduction of mobile imaging trailers that contain different types of scanners (e.g. from Siemens and Philips). This use of mobile facilities has significant economic and practical advantages for Hospital Trusts, allowing them to secure imaging as and when needed (without the need for significant financial investment). In the current circumstances, imaging capability is severely stretched and, again, this has been addressed using more imaging trailers. So, for example, the Nightingale Hospitals use mobile trailers for their CT provision. CT images are important because they provide a unique diagnostic facility for the detection of COVID-19 caused pneumonias in the context of intensive care. The Nightingale Hospitals are a good example of the need for flexibility. Although images and data can be acquired within that Nightingale Hospital, the images and data need to be transmitted for storage and viewing at an established hospital (e.g. in the case of the Nightingale Hospital in London's ExCel to St Bartholomew's Hospital). The image and other data acquired using mobile scanners normally needs to be transferred onto DVDs for transportation to the hospital, with the risk of errors and possibility of transferring the infection. The transfer process is also completely reliant on significant human intervention. The Visbion solution in the proposed project overcomes all these problems by using the company's unique Image Cube technology. This allows images and data to be automatically transferred across a commercial telecommunications network using military specification encryption. Once the data has arrived at the permanent hospital, Visbion's technology decrypts the images/data and automatically stores them in the hospital's information system. The second aspect of the project is the ability for radiologists working remotely (e.g. from home) to rapidly read and report on images from multiple locations within the NHS using Visbion's web-based PACS -- thus providing rapid, expert diagnosis.

In order to manufacture many biological products at scale it is first necessary digitally to design the products so that they can be made using standard parts and automated processes. There are a number of digital parts (‘bioparts’) registries, consumables libraries, and biological design tools (‘bioCAD’ tools) becoming available for use by a broad range of users. However there is a problem in that it is difficult for potential users to access information about bioparts and bioCAD tools because of the different formats used in each of the registries and libraries, and difficulties with inter-operability between machinery. This is similar to the early days of manufacturing, for example in using machine tools for the automotive and aerospace industries, whereas nowadays all this manufacturing machinery and CADCAM systems are entirely interoperable. This project aims to solve the problem of searching multiple registries and libraries by defining a standard for the interchange of information about bioparts and bioCAD tools - DICOM-SB, and also using this standard to develop prototype web-based broker software that will interface to the various registries and libraries and allow them to be searched by users through a single common interface. The broker software will leverage the considerable investment already made by Visbion in its implementation of the DICOM standard in medical imaging. The project will also make recommendations on the commercialisation of the completed broker software and how it can form the core of a scalable cloud delivered service funded through a combination of registry and library owners’ and users subscriptions and transaction charges levied on bioparts, consumables and bioCAD purchases.