The key to integrating advanced healthcare into Europe’s sustainable city centers

In this video, Dr. Marie‑Caroline from Montpellier explains how the BlueSeal MRI enabled advanced imaging to return to the city center. Montpellier’s team faced a clear challenge: how to install a state‑of‑the‑art MRI within a historic, sustainable urban core where weight limits, protected facades and the impossibility of adding a quench pipe made conventional systems impractical. Dr. Marie-Caroline states: "We had architectural constraints that prevented us from having a quench pipe and above all, we wanted this project to have an ecological dimension."

They chose the Philips BlueSeal MRI — a permanently sealed, helium‑free system that eliminates the need for a quench pipe and reduces installation weight — allowing the imaging center to be integrated into the heart of the city without compromising the building or the city’s ecological goals.

According to Dr. Marie‑Caroline, embedding the scanner in the urban fabric has reshaped access to care: patients can now walk, cycle or take a short tram ride to appointments, making preventive screening more convenient and helping to normalize essential exams. She highlights the patient‑focused features as well: “Only BlueSeal allowed us to have a 70 cm bore,” and the improved in‑bore experience was “the icing on the cake.”

For the team, the decision was not just technical but generational. Backed by Philips’ expertise and a proven track record of more than “2,000 magnets installed worldwide,” the project supports a broader vision: shifting from treatment‑focused care to preventive health and ensuring advanced diagnostics remain a natural, accessible part of city life for future generations.