16 INNOVATION AT RAYSEARCH
SOFTWARE INNOVATION: IT’S ALL ABOUT PROXIMITY As Director of development, Henrik Friberger heads up a cross-disciplinary team of 165 staff comprising physicists, application developers, testers, imaging specialists and UX engineers. Working alongside colleagues from product management and the research and machine learning departments, they’re the engine-room of technology innovation at RaySearch, driving cutting-edge functionality for upcoming software releases as well as the introduction of new products.
Technology and innovation notwithstanding, it’s the close relationship with clinical customers that sets RaySearch apart – whether jointly developing new products and functionality with large research hospitals or providing the support and service that smaller clinics need to deliver enhanced patient outcomes. “Proximity to the clinical customer is paramount in order to understand what the enduser needs – and why,” says Friberger.
the treatment room – the treatment machine, treatment couch, imaging systems and patient positioning devices. As such, that means a more consistent user experience and enhanced workflow efficiency regardless of the type of treatment machine. That “machine agnosticism” will, more broadly, make life easier for new-entrant radiotherapy equipment vendors, allowing them to integrate RayCommand rather than developing their own TCS from scratch.
Equally, there’s a requirement to innovate at pace to meet the needs of existing users while supporting new-customer acquisition – an imperative that informs day-to-day activity across the development program. “I don’t have to manufacture that urgency,” adds Friberger, “because development staff are part of the collective conversation with clinical customers and, in turn, are extensively involved in shaping, prioritizing and owning what we do in terms of the product roadmaps.”
It was also a big year for RayStation®*, with the 10B* release in December incorporating support for high-doserate brachytherapy planning. This new module is already opening up sales conversations with a diverse and established user base – not surprising given that around onethird of clinics that provide external-beam radiotherapy also offer brachytherapy services. “A single treatment planning system that can handle both external-beam and brachy modalities is a big advantage for the clinics in terms of staff training, workflow efficiency and IT support,” notes Friberger.
INNOVATING AT PACE Throughout 2020, Friberger and his team registered impressive progress on product innovation – and along multiple coordinates. The launch of the RayCommand ®* treatment control system (TCS), the latest extension of the RaySearch product line, is a case in point. For end-users, RayCommand offers unified management and control of key systems in * Subject to regulatory clearance in some markets.
Another 2020 development that looks set to yield new sales conversations this year and beyond is the launch of a dedicated interface between the RayCare ®* oncology information system (OIS) and Varian’s TrueBeam linear accelerators. Part of the RayCare 4B* release, this interop-
