THE ASAHI SHIMBUN
September 1, 2022 at 15:32 JST
The main office of Shimadzu Corp. in Kyoto’s Nakagyo Ward (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
An investigation has been launched into a medical equipment employee who is suspected of setting a timer to X-ray equipment at a hospital in Kumamoto Prefecture so that it would stop working and require a repair service.
The employee of a subsidiary of Shimadzu Corp., a leading precision tools and equipment maker in Kyoto, allegedly set the device during a maintenance check, sources said.
Shimadzu has opened a fact-finding investigation into the incident involving outside technical experts, according to the sources.
The company announced Aug. 25 that there was the possibility that “inappropriate behavior” took place during the maintenance inspection.
But it has not offered details.
According to the hospital, officials with Shimadzu and its subsidiary Shimadzu Medical Systems Corp., which sells and maintains medical equipment, visited the hospital on Aug. 25 to apologize for the incident.
The X-ray equipment, which was manufactured by Shimadzu, was delivered to the hospital in 2009, according to hospital officials.
An employee with Shimadzu Medical Systems who came to the hospital for an inspection and maintenance service in September 2017 is believed to have set the timer.
The equipment stopped emitting X-rays around the following month, forcing the hospital to seek repairs in November.
The hospital paid more than 2 million yen ($14,300) for a part replacement, according to hospital officials.
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