In a story that demonstrates how Israeli technology is aiding American fighting forces in Iraq, the U.S. Army purchased 76 portable, digital X-ray systems from an Israeli company called Orex specifically designed for use on the battlefield The first batch of more than 50 machines was delivered to the army about a month ago and is seeing use in Iraq.
Here is the story that ran in the Boston Herald on April 2.
OREX X-RAY UNIT SEES IRAQ ACTION: PORTABLE MACHINES EASIER TO USE IN BATTLE
by Tom Walsh
A portable, digital X-ray system built by an Israeli company with U.S. headquarters in Newton is proving to be a “lifesaver” on the battlefield in Iraq and Afghanistan, the director of a military training center said yesterday.
The X-ray system, built by Orex Computerized Radiography Inc., is “lightweight and portable,” said Col. Thomas Knuth, commanding director of the U.S. Army Training Trauma Center in Miami.
“The main X-ray they have for the field right now takes a couple of people to carry and has to be recalibrated every time they move it,” he said.
The Orex machine, in contrast, weighs about 88 pounds and “can be used with almost no training,” he said.
The first batch of more than 50 machines was delivered to the Army about a month ago, while 26 more are set for shipment next week to Special Forces units, said Hillel Bachrach, Orex’s president and chief executive.
He said the two orders cost the military a total of about $7.5 million.
Bachrach said his company trained about 30 military personnel to use the technology.
One advantage of the all-digital system, he said, is the ability to transmit X-ray images over the Internet.
And, he said, unlike traditional X-rays, it requires no chemicals to develop the images.
“When you are in Iraq, you don’t need to be carrying all those chemicals around with you,” Bachrach said.
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