When a surgery center closes, the equipment is usually one of the last problems anyone gets to, and one of the few that can still return money. These are the steps, in the order that saves the most time.
1. Set the date the space has to be empty
Everything else works back from it: the lease end, the last case day, or a date set by a receiver. Removal of a full facility takes planning around building access, elevators, and loading docks, so the earlier the date is fixed, the more options you have.
2. Inventory room by room
For each piece: manufacturer, model, serial number, and whether it works. A photo of the label on each unit is enough. Include the accessories that go with it: monitor carts, footswitches, scopes, cables. They are easy to leave in a drawer and they carry value.
3. Separate what you own from what you do not
This step prevents the most expensive mistakes.
- Leased equipment belongs to the leasing company. It is returned or bought out under the lease, and it cannot be sold.
- Financed equipment may carry a lien. A lender with a security interest usually has to release it before the equipment can be sold free and clear. Your lender or counsel can tell you what applies.
- Vendor-owned or consigned items go back to the vendor.
If you are unsure about a piece, say so on the list. A buyer can price it while you confirm ownership.
4. Deal with patient data
Some equipment stores patient images, including C-arm workstations and some endoscopy video recorders. The drives have to be wiped or removed before the equipment leaves your control or is resold. Ask any buyer how they handle it, and whether they document it.
5. Cancel or transfer service contracts
Find every active service agreement and its notice period. Some can transfer with the equipment, which can add to its value; most simply need to be cancelled on time.
6. Get one offer for everything
Selling piece by piece can get a slightly higher price per item, and it takes months. It also leaves the hard-to-sell items behind for someone to haul away at your cost. A single buyer for the whole facility gives you one number, one removal, and an empty space.
7. Schedule removal and payment together
Agree on the removal date and the payment terms in the same document, before anything is loaded. We pay at pickup, at the price in the written offer.
8. Keep the records
Keep the inventory, the bill of sale, and any data-handling documentation with the closure file. Receivers, lenders, and accountants will ask for them.
If you are working through a closure now, send us the inventory. A written offer for the whole facility comes back within 24 hours.