Choosing a Q-Flow suspension configuration for your operating room

What the Q-Flow suspension family does

Modern operating rooms depend on more and more screens for clinical images and video, so the arms that hold them must be functional and ergonomic. Merivaara, the group behind Lojer, has completely updated the suspension solutions of the Q-Flow family so that surgical lights and monitors can be combined in configurations that fit each room.

The suspensions carry Q-Flow surgical lights, described on the Q-Flow suspension product page, as well as medical monitors. Planning the lights and the screens on a shared axis, rather than as separate projects, is what avoids the cluttered ceiling many older rooms suffer from.

SOLO: one arm, three mounting options

SOLO is the single-arm configuration and the only one offered in mobile, wall and ceiling versions. That makes it the flexible choice for a procedure room, a refurbished theatre without a free ceiling slab, or a department that wants to move one light between rooms.

The ceiling version is available with 50, 65 or 110 mm ceiling tube options. The tube diameter matters to the structural engineer because it is tied to the load path into the slab, so confirm it early rather than after the ceiling has been closed.

DUO, TRIO and QUAD: multi-arm ceiling configurations

DUO, TRIO and QUAD are ceiling-mounted multi-arm configurations. DUO is offered with a 65 or 110 mm ceiling tube, while TRIO and QUAD use the 110 mm tube. A typical DUO carries two lights, or one light and one monitor arm. TRIO adds a third arm, for instance a second monitor or a camera-equipped light.

QUAD has four horizontally swivelling arms and provides a complete surgical lighting and display setup for a digital operating room. It is the natural fit where video from an integration system such as OpenOR needs to reach several monitors around the table.

• SOLO: one arm; mobile, wall or ceiling; tube 50, 65 or 110 mm
• DUO: two arms; ceiling; tube 65 or 110 mm
• TRIO: three arms; ceiling; 110 mm tube
• QUAD: four horizontally swivelling arms; ceiling; 110 mm tube

How to choose a Q-Flow duo or trio layout

Start from the clinical workflow, not the catalogue. Count the lights you really need over the table, then the monitors that must be visible from the surgeon, assistant and scrub nurse positions. A DUO with one light and one monitor is often enough for a day-surgery room, whereas laparoscopic and orthopaedic rooms tend to need a TRIO or QUAD.

Next check reach and collision. Place arms on the ceiling plan together with pendants and any laminar-flow canopy, a task covered in our article on planning the OR ceiling as one system. Keep in mind where the table can rotate and where a C-arm might enter the room.

Installation and structural checks

Every ceiling suspension transfers its load into the building. Ask the supplier for the total mass of each configuration including lights and monitors, the required mounting plate or anchor details, and the ceiling cavity height needed for the selected tube. Have a structural engineer sign off the slab or steel frame before ordering.

Also confirm the power and data routes for each monitor arm, the cable management inside the arms, and how the lights are tied into emergency power. Our installation service team can review these points against your drawings.

Request a configuration review

If you are comparing configurations for a new theatre or a refurbishment, send us the room dimensions, ceiling height and the list of lights and monitors you plan to use. Beckfinity specialists will propose a suitable Q-Flow arrangement and a matching quote through our contact page.