GE has committed to lowering the average energy consumption of its new ultrasound products by 25% by 2012. The percentage is based on 2005 performance. The company, along with other medical device manufacturers within the European Coordination Committee of the Radiological, Electromedical, and Healthcare IT (COCIR) industry have made the agreement as part of a self-regulatory initiative called the Energy Related Products (ErP) directive. Enforcement measures will also be put into place to ensure that strict requirements and environmental improvements are met before the product can hit the market. "To give you a quick snapshot, suppose that in just one of our ultrasound product lines, 700 Voluson E8s were brought into service in the EU in a given year," says Reinaldo Garcia, president and CEO of GE Healthcare for Europe, Middle East, and Africa. "Due to decreased scan time and lower power consumption, the annual electricity savings compared to its previous version would total more than 400,000 kW per year, which is enough to power over 90 EU houses for one year." If this example were multiplied across the industry, the overall effect of the reduced energy consumption would be significant, says Garcia.