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      “Before implementing MedicalOne, sterile water shortages exposed the fragile nature of the NHS supply chain, affecting all UK health boards. Forced supplier changes doubled our water costs overnight.”

      Decontamination Compliance Officer, NHS Highland

      Stockpile of bottled sterile water for the autoclaves in a store room
      Bottled sterile water, stored and waiting for the autoclaves

      Before MedicalOne, every autoclave cycle in the department ran on water delivered in bottles.

      Key numbers

      8,840 bottles a year

      No longer bought, delivered or thrown away. About 20 a day

      62% lower water costs

      Compared with bottled sterile water

      Below 10 µS/cm

      Conductivity in all four laboratory tests. The EN 13060 Annex C limit is 15

      Over 2 years

      In service with no downtime

      MedicalOne with wall-mounted stainless steel purified water reservoir, Raigmore Hospital, Inverness
      The dental department at Raigmore Hospital, NHS Highland, in Inverness has 22 chairs and more than 18,000 patient appointments a year.

      Its five autoclaves run on purified water, less than 20 litres a day. Until the MedicalOne went in, that water arrived in bottles: 8,840 a year.

      When national shortages hit in 2024, the price doubled. An earlier on-site RO purification system had failed, with inconsistent production and quality.

      If your autoclaves depend on bottled water, your department carries the same supply risk.

      The problem

      Roll cage delivery of bottled sterile water, School of Oral Health Science, Inverness
      20 bottles a day, every working day

      Every autoclave cycle needed water that came by road and was stored and opened bottle by bottle, then thrown away.

      Pile of single-use plastic bottles of sterile water
      Shortages doubled the price in 2024

      Supplier changes forced by national shortages doubled the department’s water costs.

      Row of benchtop autoclaves in the Raigmore dental decontamination unit
      An on-site system that could not keep up

      An earlier on-site RO purification system failed, with inconsistent production and quality.

      What we did

      MedicalOne unit and wall-mounted stainless reservoir at Raigmore Hospital dental department
      One MedicalOne, beside the autoclaves

      We installed a MedicalOne in the dental decontamination unit. It makes autoclave feed water from the mains supply, where the technicians use it.

      MedicalOne installed in the Raigmore dental decontamination unit with its stainless reservoir and pipework
      No filters, no membranes, no chemicals

      MedicalOne uses Vapour Compression Distillation, the process used to manufacture sterile water, built into one unit.

      With no filters, membranes or chemicals, nothing clogs or needs replacing, and quality does not drift as parts wear.

      Laboratory sample bottles on the worktop next to the autoclaves
      Independently tested four times by a UKAS-accredited laboratory

      Between October 2024 and August 2026, Scottish Water Scientific Services, a UKAS-accredited laboratory, analysed four samples of MedicalOne water.

      Conductivity was below 10 µS/cm each time.

      The results

      Every EN 13060 Annex C limit the laboratory could measure, met.

      MedicalOne water against the Annex C limit for autoclave feed water

      Clear

      Appearance. Annex C: colourless, clean

      <10

      Conductivity, µS/cm at 20°C. Annex C limit 15

      5.9

      pH. Annex C range 5.0 to 7.5

      <2

      Chloride, mg/l. Annex C limit 2

      <18

      Phosphate, µg/l as P. Annex C limit 500 as P2O5

      <7

      Iron, µg/l. Annex C limit 200

      <0.3

      Lead, µg/l. Annex C limit 50

      <0.02

      Cadmium, µg/l. Annex C limit 5

      <2, <0.8, <0.6, <2.0

      Copper, nickel, chromium, manganese, µg/l. Annex C limit 100 combined

      Samples taken at the MedicalOne outlet on 5 August 2026 (lead: 24 February 2026) and analysed independently by Scottish Water Scientific Services, a UKAS-accredited laboratory. The laboratory reports against drinking water standards, so we compared its results with the Annex C limits. Hardness and evaporation residue have Annex C limits below what this analysis can detect, so it cannot confirm them. Silicate was not measured. The results apply to the parameters measured.

      Why this matters beyond one department

      Bottled sterile water ties every autoclave cycle to a national supply chain. Making the water on site from the mains takes the department out of that chain: no deliveries, no store room and no price set by someone else’s shortage.

      Close-up of the stainless steel MedicalOne purified water reservoir
      What changed for the customer

      The department no longer buys bottled water for its autoclaves. That is 8,840 bottles a year it no longer orders, stores or throws away. Water costs are 62% lower and no longer move with the market. The unit has run for over 2 years without downtime.

      “Since installing MedicalOne, we are self-sufficient, creating as much water as we need at no extra cost. It’s a no brainer for us.”

      Still buying bottled sterile water for your autoclaves?

      Tell us how much bottled water your department uses and what for. We will tell you whether a MedicalOne can replace it.

      Prefer to talk? Book a call

      sales@if-water.com