Reich Consulting Services (RCS), Plantation, Fla., builds and installs FDG PET labs across the country, from Alaska to Connecticut. (FDG is the radioactive sugar synthesized in positron emission tomography). The firm recently finished installing their 23rd nuclear medicine laboratory in the past two years. RCS's primary customers include hospitals, research labs, imaging centers and large cardiology groups according to President Gary Reich.

RCS, with three employees, combines off-the-shelf items, including calibrators, survey meters, and syringe shields, with customized stainless steel cabinetry designed to support the weight of the shielding as well meeting technologists' work needs, from the process of how the doses are brought into the laboratory to where the cases are stored, to how the dose is removed from the canister. RCS designs work tables where technologists measure and view the dose through the lead glass shield before the patient receives the dose (usually from a certified radiation safety officer or physicist). Using stainless steel makes it easier for the technicians to clean the lab and make sure there are no traces of radioactivity.

RCS works in all types of spaces, even as small as 7' x 8'. They take responsibility for developing the space properly and meeting all standards of quality and certification. RCS also provides additional value to their customers in terms of helping them get designers, contractors, licenses or figuring out budgets.
A main challenge that Reich faces when building new labs is that most companies and architects tend to overlook the hot lab area. The camera always seems to be the focus when creating the new structure (since the camera might weigh up to two tons). But the hot lab area is what RCS is focused on, as it might weigh two thousand pounds in a 3' x 3' area. The load-bearing of the floor must be considered as well as how to get equipment into the room without destroying the floor. The right design, equipment, and cabinetry must be put together properly for the structure to be complete and functional.

A basic lab can be set up from $15,000 to $50,000, depending on how much equipment is necessary and what cabinetry is going to be used. Reich cautions that product lines and services are always changing. "They have a life cycle. First it's experimental, then it's accepted, then there's the rush for implementation, then there's too much competition, and then you get to the new area," Reich said. While products and services tend to have a four- to five-year life span, basic labs will need to be updated on a continuous basis.

Many inquiries to RCS come through the Internet but only as an introductory resource. Beyond that, most of RCS's business is from traditional sources -- by phone, referral or face-to-face meetings. "The Internet is very useful though in people finding each other for these very specific needs," continued Reich. Although not a DOTmed user himself (they are not resellers), Reich often refers clients to DOTmed for refurbished cameras for their labs.

Reich had advice for those looking to build labs: "The earlier you start planning for what your needs are, the better....if you plan early enough, everyone wins -- the buyer and the seller, because there's enough time to understand exactly what needs to be developed."

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