IPL FOR DUMMIES CRITICAL FACTORS IN SELECTING AN IPL MACHINE FOR YOUR BUSINESS!
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IPL FOR DUMMIES
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IPL FOR DUMMIES
CRITICAL FACTORS IN SELECTING
AN IPL MACHINE FOR YOUR
BUSINESS!
CRITICAL FACTORS IN CHOOSING AN IPL SYSTEM © 2013 Wear Nothing Medical & Beauty PAGE 1
IPL FOR DUMMIES
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IPL FOR DUMMIES
CRITICAL FACTORS IN SELECTING AN IPL MACHINE
CONTENTS:
PAGE
INTRODUCTION 3
OVERVIEW OF IPL 5
TRAINING 8
TGA REGISTERED 10
THE CHINESE FACTOR 11
THE FUNDIMENTAL REQUIREMENTS OF AN IPL 13
THE SUPPLIER 14
CRITICAL FACTORS FOR EXCELLENT CLINICAL 15
RESULTS
CRITICAL FACTORS TO REDUCE FREQUENCY 23
AND SEVERITY OF ADVERSE REACTIONS
CRITICAL FACTORS TO OPTIMISE YOUR RETURN 25
ON INVESTMENT
CRITICAL FACTORS TO MINIMISE PROFIT 30
LEAKAGE
PROFITABILITY ANALYSIS 32
BASIC PROFIT PROJECTIONS 34
SUMMARY 36
CRITICAL FACTORS IN CHOOSING AN IPL SYSTEM © 2013 Wear Nothing Medical & Beauty PAGE 2
IPL FOR DUMMIES ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ IPL FOR DUMMIES CRITICAL FACTORS IN SELECTING AN IPL MACHINE INTRODUCTION This document has been written in an attempt to take some of the mystery out of purchasing an IPL system for the less technically minded of salon owners currently looking at adding IPL to their business. It is easy to get confused by the raft of technical specifications that you are faced with when purchasing your first IPL system. Having been through the process ourselves when selecting a suitable system for Wear Nothing Medical & Beauty in the very early days of our IPL adventure, we know just how complicated the selection process can be. We would like to thank Paul Kadler for his Cosmetic Dog & Lemon Guide without which we would have found it very difficult to select the right IPL machines for our business and on which much of the following text is based. There are dozens of IPL systems in the market to choose from but how do you make sure that the machine you are considering is actually the “best bang for your buck” when you have different sales people making conflicting claims as to the merits of their particular machine. We have tried to write this document from a neutral perspective. However, because we are the owner of Wear Nothing Medical & Beauty and we design and develop the Spectrum range of IPL systems and distribute Apolo IPL systems, the reader should be aware that we also have a product to sell and in the handy comparison sheet which is contained in the appendix of this document we make no excuses for having taken the liberty of including our offerings to the market. We hope that the reader will see that we have at least tried to inform them about the key factors involved in selecting the right machine for your business without too much of a skew towards our own machines. We have also found it useful from time to time to directly compare the machines that we sell in order to demonstrate practical differences relating to our machines. Although we are referring to our machines, we hope that by pointing out the differences and why these are important, that the reader can then take this as a guide when comparing other IPL systems. The potential consequences of choosing the wrong machine for your business are: CRITICAL FACTORS IN CHOOSING AN IPL SYSTEM © 2013 Wear Nothing Medical & Beauty PAGE 3
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Ineffective treatments
Frequent adverse reactions
High number of refunds
High number of complaints
Negative word of mouth
Tarnished reputation for the whole salon
Reduced profits because of high capital cost and consumables
Lost revenue due to mechanical breakdown
The company selling the machine disappearing – leaving you with a machine that
cannot be supported
No insurance cover due to lack of TGA registration
Possible insurance issues due to lack of proper staff training
In a nutshell, choosing the wrong IPL machine can be disastrous for your business. We
hope that by the time you have read this document you are at least in a slightly better
position to at least ask the IPL sales person the right questions which will allow you to
make an informed decision about what, for many salons, will be their highest capital
investment to date for their salon.
Wear Nothing Medical & Beauty
Noosa, QLD
16 July 2008
Updated 05 September 2013
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IPL FOR DUMMIES ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ A BRIEF OVERVIEW ON HOW IPL WORKS As this booklet is written on choosing the right IPL system for your business we do not want to go into too much detail on how IPL works but a brief overview may be helpful for some. When we started in this business we thought “this is too good to be true”. During the years in the beauty industry we have seen many “miracle” technologies come and go and we suspected when we first researched IPL that this may be another of those fads that come and go. The more deeply we became involved in the industry though we can see that those early fears were completely wrong and that IPL is indeed an amazing technology. We get great pleasure hearing stories of how IPL has changed someone’s life. Whilst it is purely a cosmetic result and does not improve a person’s health you can imagine how it affects a woman’s life being able to get rid of unwanted hairs in unwanted areas such as the face and thighs. It literally changes their life! What is IPL (Intense Pulse Light)? IPL is a non-invasive skin treatment that emits powerful bursts of light energy to treat sun-damaged skin, wrinkles, acne, vascular conditions and unwanted hair growth without damaging the surface of the skin. In the above pictures you can see the different conditions that are being treated and the light from the IPL being applied (note the different depths that the light penetrates – we will cover this later in this booklet). You can see that the various conditions are destroyed whilst the skin remains relatively untouched. This is the process of selective CRITICAL FACTORS IN CHOOSING AN IPL SYSTEM © 2013 Wear Nothing Medical & Beauty PAGE 5
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photothermolysis on which all IPL treatments are based. Basically what this means is
that light energy is absorbed by dark areas but is reflected by light areas.
IPL systems use hand held flash lamps to emit micro pulses of light across a broad band
of visible wavelengths. By using gentle pulses of light to momentarily create heat, IPL
can permanently disable hair follicles and prevent future growth. Similarly, IPL also
achieves excellent long term results when treating thread veins, skin pigmentation, acne
and other skin complaints.
Applications of IPL:
Permanent hair reduction
Photorejuvenation (fine lines and wrinkles)
Pigmentation
Vascular treatments such as spider veins and rosacea
Acne Vulgaris
We do not want to go into technical details in this booklet but as an example we will
sumarise how IPL works with hair reduction.
How does IPL work on hair reduction?
The melanin in the hair (which gives the hair its colour) absorbs light, which is
momentarily converted to heat. This heat is transferred to the growth cells at the root of
the hair, permanently disabling them. Most colours of hair (very blonde and grey are not
easy!) can be removed from all parts of the body, except very sensitive areas such as the
inside of nose and ear.
Hair reduction is arguably the easiest to treat using IPL and even smaller cheaper
machines will produce results in time. It is also the safest of all the IPL treatments and is
a good place to start your IPL business before progressing to more complicated
procedures.
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IPL FOR DUMMIES ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Advantages of IPL Fast: The large surface area of the IPL hand piece allows for fast and effective treatments with no post treatment discomfort. Everyone can return to work immediately after an IPL treatment and there is no “downtime” associated with the treatment which is in contrast to laser resurfacing. With IPL, a larger area can be treated at one time as compared to laser treatments. IPL treatments are typically four times faster than traditional laser technology and much less painful than laser, waxing or electrolysis. Non-ablative: IPL does not damage the skin surface, unlike microdermabrasion and laser resurfacing. Therefore there is virtually no recovery time. There is also minimal pain associated with IPL treatments (as long as you have the right machine) unlike many other treatments which require topical anesthetic. Comfortable: IPL is a low risk procedure involving minimal discomfort. It offers integrated skin cooling during treatments which greatly reduces any “pain” felt by the customer. Patient comfort is maintained without the need for cooling gels or topical anesthetic. In comparison to waxing, electrolysis, laser and even shaving, IPL treatments are significantly more comfortable for the customer with no skin irritation. Permanent: With just a few treatments customers see results that will last for years. Over the years we have seen and heard of incredible results from IPL treatments and we are constantly amazed by just how effective IPL is in treating the conditions listed above. CRITICAL FACTORS IN CHOOSING AN IPL SYSTEM © 2013 Wear Nothing Medical & Beauty PAGE 7
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TRAINING
You can purchase the best IPL machine for the best price but if the operator has not been
adequately trained, your wise decision in choosing the right IPL machine could be for
nothing!
Different suppliers offer different training packages with their machines. Some, we are
sure, are very good and some, we are equally sure some are simply inadequate for your
needs. IPL is actually a very simple procedure and you could learn the actual treatment
process in very few hours and possibly go onwards and upwards with your new business
without incident. However that one unusual client that is treated that should not be,
could ultimately cost you, not just your IPL machine but your entire business.
If you treat a person that should not be treated or you treat someone at too high a level
and they have an adverse reaction, then they will have every right to take legal action
against you and your business – and they will win!
We find it impossible to see the logic in purchasing a piece of equipment for tens of
thousands of dollars and then baulking at the cost of sending yourself or your staff on a
proper, nationally accredited IPL training course.
The possible negative impact of staff who have not been properly trained are:
Lack of confidence resulting in poor results and loss of customers
Mistakes which harm your customer
Insurance ramifications in the event of an incident
Decreased customer satisfaction due to improper or inefficient treatments
Bad press in the event of an incident
Many suppliers offer a one, two or even three day onsite training course for their IPL
machine. However, we know what it is like to train staff in a salon environment.
Constant interruptions as well as customers who must be attended to, generally mean that
the training is not sufficient because of the constant distractions for staff. With IPL the
results could be tragically different in the event of a mistake!
A professional IPL course costs in the region of $2,500 per person. Compared with the
tens of thousands you will be spending on an IPL machine we see this as a very small
investment which in turn will allow you to make the most of your total investment in IPL.
Not to mention the possible costs of mistreating a patient! The tens of thousands you
spend on an IPL system could be nothing compared to the cost of a malpractice law suit!
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There are a few schools in Australia which offer dedicated IPL training classes. Schools
are detailed below:
o The Fleming Institute in Melbourne
o Fuss Beauty College in Sydney
o Cairns Beauty Acadmey
o GGTA Gold Coast Training Academy
o Advanced Nail & Beauty
o Grayclay Medical Aesthetics Education
o The Beauty House Academy Sunshine Coast Campus
o Australasian Academy of Cosmetic Dermal Science
o Lotus Hair and Beauty Bendigo Tafe
In the not too distant future IPL is going to be part of a newly developed course that will
be part of the Beauty Training Package and some semblance of order will hopefully be
introduced to the industry. We think that this is essential, not only for the safety of the
consumer, but for the long term viability of the industry as a whole. There have already
been the scare stories on IPL in current affairs programs like Today Tonight and we are
in danger of losing a great new industry because of the actions of the few cowboys that
inhabit our space.
We wrote to Today Tonight after a recent “IPL bashing session.” In our letter we
pointed out that our customers had performed over 100,000 IPL procedures with our
machines. In the number of years we have been selling equipment (and yes we sell
Chinese systems as well as our own Spectrum system) there had only been one incident
that had been referred to an insurance company. Guess what ! The operator was one of
the few that “had not needed” to be trained at one of the colleges listed above.
When people ask what the most important thing to look at when selecting an IPL machine
we unhesitatingly say “TRAINING”. You can buy the most expensive machine on the
market and get worse clinical outcomes than the person who bought the $5,000 Chinese
machine off eBay who was properly trained. Of course there is more to buying an IPL
machine than just training and hopefully this will become apparent as you read on.
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IPL FOR DUMMIES ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ TGA REGISTERED In very few words it is obvious that you should only buy an IPL system that is registered with the TGA. To do otherwise is simply crazy. Many insurance companies will not entertain you if your machine is not TGA registered and even if they do insure you it might be a different story if you need to make a claim. Ask for the TGA registration number and check out the registration on the TGA website. A few moments checking at the start may save you lots of heartache in the long term! Go to http://www.tga.gov.au/ - on the top right hand corner of the website you will find a link to search the product register. You then search under medical devices. All it takes is a few minutes! CRITICAL FACTORS IN CHOOSING AN IPL SYSTEM © 2013 Wear Nothing Medical & Beauty PAGE 10
IPL FOR DUMMIES ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ THE CHINESE FACTOR Buying direct from China can clearly save the purchaser of any piece of equipment a lot of money. Some of the prices quoted are very attractive indeed and there are many salons that are choosing that route. The following e-mail is typical of one that we receive:- Dear Wear Nothing, Thank you for our phone call today. As I mentioned, I have been importing from **** in China and I have enclosed pictures of the machines and the handpieces. Up until now, I have been satisfied with the performance and technology, however, the second last machine that I received had a faulty handpiece and there was so much mucking around in trying to establish what was the error/fault. Including the hire of another device from a local distributor and various other costs, I have spent more than $11,000 (more than the jolly machine!) trying to resolve an issue of a device that worked for less than ten days. The entire internal component was sent back to **** and now begins the skullduggery. I have this evening formally requested a full refund, as three months to rectify the problem is too long and I am paying out more money unnecessarily, which has been financially draining. It now appears that the problem with the first machine, and the second machine is a faulty handpiece marked "C". Handpieces A and B are fine and we are up to about 25,000 flashes. What my enquiry was when I was surfing the net last night was to find another distributor who could supply future handpieces which are compatible with the ***** unit. The unworkable handpieces are marked "C"which have the largest spot size. You mentioned that your handpieces are good for 50,000 flashes which is fantastic. I have a *** and I love that machine so much, but it is too costly to run and I am not getting a good return for my money, especially whilst I am doing large coupon deals. Have a look, and let me know what you can do. It is easier talking to Queensland than to China as when it is convenient for them, there is a language barrier. We have removed the names as we don’t want to get into trouble ! We have personally visited almost every IPL/Laser manufacturer in China and we can assure you that if you saw where some of them are manufactured you would not be going there ! There are better manufacturers of course and like the writer above you can certainly be lucky. However the minimum that you should do is spend that little bit extra and get on a flight to China to see the machine and where it is made before you commit to buying it – they all look great on the internet ! We manufacture our IPL machines in China and we love the Chinese. But there is a big difference between a Sony TV that is made in China and a “Chinese” TV. That is CRITICAL FACTORS IN CHOOSING AN IPL SYSTEM © 2013 Wear Nothing Medical & Beauty PAGE 11
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because Sony control the manufacturing process and quality assurance – it is a very
important factor.
The number one source of our company’s IPL enquiries is from salon owners who have
already purchased an IPL system. It has worked for long enough for them to see that it is
a good business and when it breaks down and they have lost all of their IPL customers to
other salons as the customers are not prepared to wait for weeks (let alone months) for the
IPL machine to be repaired.
In summary the pro’s and con’s of buying a Chinese system direct from China are as
follows:
Advantages:-
1. Save (a lot) of money on purchase
2. You could be lucky
Disadvantages:-
1. No support if it breaks down (try talking to the Chinese by phone !)
2. No TGA registration
3. No clinical training
4. No clinical support
5. The cost of lost customers if your machine breaks down is greater than the cost of
your machine
6. Very short life expectancy
7. If the machine hurts a customer due to technical defect you have absolutely no
recourse or support from the manufacturer – is your business worth the risk ?
8. Poor quality parts *
* as an example most Chinese companies use man made sapphire for their hand-piece
and filters. As a quick check to see if this is the case, ask the supplier to allow you to
try and scratch the crystal on the head. If it is real sapphire it will not scratch.
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THE FUNDIMENTAL REQUIREMENTS OF AN IPL
Not all IPL’s are created equal and price is certainly not a good indication of quality. In
the car world you know that if you buy a Mercedes and you pay a substantial premium
for the same four wheels you generally know that you are getting a pretty good product as
compared to a cheaper branded car. Whether the Mercedes is worth that premium
obviously depends on your financial circumstances but if it is quality you are after and
you can afford it then why not!
The same scenario is unfortunately not so obvious when it comes to choosing the right
IPL machine.
To choose the correct IPL you need to compare the strengths and weaknesses of each
machine and the company that distributes it. To do so objectively you need a set of
fundamental requirements to serve as a benchmark guide.
Fundamental requirements of an IPL
1. Consistent, predictable clinical results
2. Minimise frequency and severity of adverse reactions
3. Optimise return on investment
4. Minimise profit leakage
On review you will notice that there is more to choosing an IPL system than just
technical performance. That is because IPL (or any other piece of equipment) should
never be bought as a solitary tool that performs a specific procedure. Rather you are
investing in a total solution that must satisfy your customer’s expectations AND make
you money! One, without the other will ultimately result in disaster.
In a nutshell your IPL must deliver optimal clinical results and financial results with
optimal efficiency.
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THE SUPPLIER
An important factor to consider is your supplier. Do they know their product? Can they
support you not only with technical issues but also in ongoing training and support?
Whilst choosing the right IPL system for your business is vitally important choosing the
right supplier is arguably more important and choosing a supplier without the
necessary technical support is arguably worse than choosing the wrong machine!
In the time we have been in this business we have met literally dozens of salon owners
who have been financially devastated by buying the wrong machine from the wrong
supplier.
It is the easiest thing in the world to buy cheap machines overseas and market them at
vastly inflated prices in Australia. It takes months for salons to realize that the machine
that they purchased is simply not up to the job. This gives the unscrupulous person
months to fleece the unwary before the inevitable deluge of legal actions and complaints
to the ACCC drives them out of business. This makes the situation even worse for the
salon owner who now has a machine that does not perform and now they can’t even get
parts for it in the event of breakdown.
There are no consumer magazines that you can read to get independent reviews of IPL
machines. It is not like buying a car where there are dozens of magazines you can buy to
compare which car is best for you. What can you do?
1. Ask for referral sites where the IPL machine you are looking at has been in use
for over 6 months.
2. Call a sample (or all!) of those sites to see what the salon owner thinks of:
The clinical results they are getting from the machine,
The customer service they are getting from the supplier,
Their financial results from having IPL in their business.
We would be wary of machines that have only been on the market for a short time as it
takes several months for you to really see results with IPL.
It constantly amazes us how many people buy an IPL system without even doing the most
basic of research. We hope by reading this document you are in a better position not to
be fleeced by the cowboys out there!
Below is some real comments from very unhappy and significantly poorer people who
made their choice of IPL machine without checking up on the supplier. If these people
CRITICAL FACTORS IN CHOOSING AN IPL SYSTEM © 2013 Wear Nothing Medical & Beauty PAGE 14IPL FOR DUMMIES ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ had done just a little research they would not have found themselves in a position like this! We have hidden names etc to avoid any legal issues. just wanted to write a quick note to you to explain our dealings with ****. We rented the *** from *** for just under 2 years... *** is so unprofessional and threatened us with law suits ( because our rent kept bouncing back into our account as the phone number and bank account seemed to change every week) we also had abusive emails weekly that *** would come pick up our machine. i feel so sorry for anyone who has bought a machine and now has no back up as *** has moved to hong kong and will not give a phone number even after been asked constantly for one. Trust me even when you rent one the machine is never visited or serviced, no one even came out to install it, this is what i call cowboy service... its just lucky that we had a clue when it came to ipl's. Wow, I can not believe *** is still in business, *** has ripped off so many people, including myself, cost me $18,000 and clients...........Dealing with this scum bag..... I am writing to you regarding an IPL machine (HS 310C) which was purchased in Australia via your distributor *******, which is NOT working. I have attempted to contact ****** numerous times over the past 9 months, but to no avail. I believe **** is now residing in Hong Kong. As stated,I have attempted **** on numerous occasions over the past 9 months, but, unfortunately **** has not responded to any of my communications. I need somebody to reply to this correspondence, as I am not the only buyer in Australia with this problem. These are just a small sample. If you add the telephone calls from weeping salon owners who have been totally screwed you would definitely take precautions ! CRITICAL FACTORS IN CHOOSING AN IPL SYSTEM © 2013 Wear Nothing Medical & Beauty PAGE 15
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CRITICAL FACTORS FOR EXCELLENT CLINICAL RESULTS
A) HEAD SIZE / HANDLE DESIGN
Whilst a large head size is desirable for larger jobs such as back and legs there is a
possible downside in terms of clinical results. Larger spot sizes on the wrong machine
can do you (and particularly your customer) a disservice. This is because of an effect
known as “perimeter loss”. In short this can be caused by two factors:
i) Too small a power output for the spot size
ii) Lack of tapered tunnel technology to direct the light energy directly onto the
spot surface.
iii) Quality of the lamp used by the IPL
The results of having “Perimeter Loss” are:
i) You must overlap your shots (more shots means more $$$$)
ii) A greater number of treatments required to treat an area
When choosing an IPL system it is definitely worth asking the distributor about how their
particular system overcomes perimeter loss.
Following your discussion about perimeter loss the next variable to consider in terms of
clinical efficacy is the size of the treatment head.
Intuitively the smaller the treatment head the more shots you need to fire to cover the
same area. Consequently the smaller the head, the more likely it is that you will miss
areas and the treatment will therefore be less effective. The converse is also true. The
larger the treatment head, the less likely it is that you will miss areas caused by the
misplacement of the spot during treatment.
Consequently the delivery of light across the entire treatment area (especially over larger
areas such as the back) is more uniform and less likely to create uneven results when
using the larger treatment head.
The added advantage of larger treatment heads is that their depth of penetration can be
greater than that of smaller sizes.
However – a large spot size on an underpowered machine can result in the light energy
being dissipated over the large spot size resulting in ineffective treatments. If you do
want a larger spot size for the reasons discussed make sure the machine you are
looking at has the power to handle the larger spot size.
In the case of the Spectrum 2000 and Apolo machines, the Apolo Portable simply does
not have the “grunt” to handle a spot size larger than 12 x 35mm where our Spectrum
can easily handle the larger spot sizes.
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When it comes to handle design most manufacturers have their own design. You should
test the handle for comfort. A good guide when “feeling” handles is the weight. If a
handle has an integrated cooling system it will feel heavy. In general quality handles will
be fairly heavy as there are a lot of components to fit into this vital part of an IPL
machine.
The above two images are of the two handle designs that are used on the Spectrum IPL
machines. Both have exactly the same components inside but the new design “feels”
lighter and is better balanced than our first design. However some salons still prefer the
original design and choose to use it instead of the new design. Handles are very much a
personal preference but be careful if the handle you are trying is too lightweight as it
probably means that its cooling system is limited.
B) VARIABLE TEMPERATURE CONTROL
The ability to control the treatment area temperature is critical for producing predictable
and excellent clinical outcomes. The aim of most IPL treatments is to raise the
temperature of target chromophores to about 70 degrees C while ensuring the
surrounding tissues remain at a safe level (usually less than 45 – 50 degrees C). This
need for a differential in temperature has ramifications for different treatments.
As an example; in hair removal the target tissue (hair follicle) is deep in the dermis. Due
to the depth of heat generation the ability to dissipate heat away is reduced.
Consequently there is significant potential for heat to build up and induce adverse
reactions.
Cooling the skin during treatment effectively dissipates the heat which in turn allows you
to use higher fluences (power levels) delivered at a higher repetition rate (speed) while
still maintaining comfort for the patient. The net result is more effective treatment
requiring fewer visits to achieve the desired result.
However not all cooling is desirable.
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As an example. In superficial vascular work a head that is too cold will constrict the
blood vessels and drive them deeper below the skin surface, reducing the efficacy of the
treatment. The result – more treatments will be required than if you could control the
temperature.
Therefore any IPL that does not give you full control over the temperature of the skin
(irrespective of whether the IPL has an integrated cooling system) will give you less than
desirable clinical results.
Contrary to claims of manufacturers who don’t provide integrated cooling, it is our firm
belief that temperature control is critical to clinical success. Be wary of any company
that tells you that cooling is an unnecessary nicety!
In the case of the Spectrum and Apolo machines the Spectrum can cool the head to -4
degrees whereas the Portable can only cool to -2 degrees.
C) LONG PULSE WIDTHS
The pulse width can be defined as the length of time a pulse or rapid succession of pulses
is emitted to produce a clinical shot. The ability to produce a long pulse width greatly
influences the efficacy of an IPL.
A simple way of explaining this is that a short pulse width will require more energy to
heat up the target tissue over the shorter period of time.
With respect to hair reduction short pulse widths tend to vaporise the hair shaft with little
effect on the follicle itself. Consequently short pulse widths create temporary hair loss
but fail to produce long term results.
In addition longer pulse widths are safer (especially with darker skin) to use as the energy
is released over a longer period of time.
Obviously excessively long pulse widths can lead to inadequate clinical results.
Ideally you should look for an IPL system where the pulse width can be varied. This
will give you the best of all worlds.
First Second Third First
Pulse Pulse Pulse pulse
First Delay Second Repeat Delay
Delay Pulse interval
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Frequency
Figure 5.4IPL FOR DUMMIES
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Both
The Spectrum and Apolo IPL systems have variable pulse widths.
D) HIGH FLUENCE
No discussion of clinical efficacy would be complete without reference to the fluence.
The assumption is that the higher the fluence a machine delivers the more effective it is.
This is true but be aware that the fluence should be measured relative to the spot size and
the even distribution of power to the IPL head and treatment area.
Be aware also that the efficiency and life expectancy of the lamp used by the IPL system
will have an effect on the fluence of the machine. As a lamp gets older the power
decreases in the treatment head and you should ask the distributor about this effect when
selecting your IPL system.
We have tested various machines and found that the reading on the machine and the
output at the head is significantly different. 30 joules in a small machine often does not
mean 30 joules on a larger machine. This does not mean that the smaller machine will
be less effective. The recommended settings on the smaller machine will simply be
more than on the larger, more powerful machine.
Most treatments you will ever carry out will be in the 25 – 35 joules range. In our
experience we have never seen any treatments that require a machine to go above or even
reach 50 joules. Any machine that touts having greater than 50 joules of output as an
advantage is promoting a level that cannot be used in practice (unless the actual power
output is less than the IPL machine reads on the control screen).
E) UPGRADES TO YOUR MACHINE
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Whilst not being absolutely critical to your selection of the best machine today it is
always worth asking the supplier of an IPL system what their upgrade path is for their
machine in the event of design changes. The last thing you want when purchasing an
expensive piece of equipment is that it is obsolete a couple of years after you have
purchased one. Ask the supplier:
a) Do they have upgrade plans for existing machines
b) The cost of any such upgrades
The Spectrum 2000 is equipped with a USB port for software upgrades as we see this as
being the area where most major changes will occur.
F) VARIABLE WAVELENGHTS
The more precise you can be when targeting a particular area or problem the better your
clinical results are likely to be. In hair removal for example some areas of hair such as
pubic hair have deeper roots than superficial face hair. You will therefore achieve better
results by using the correct wavelength for the correct job. Longer wavelengths will
penetrate more deeply and you can more directly target the area that you are seeking to
treat.
You can see this in the following light penetration chart (which you will cover in your
training).
As you can see from the chart above, longer wavelengths of light will penetrate deeper
than short wavelengths.
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In addition you will see from the following chart that hemoglobin only absorbs light at
certain wavelengths. Your choice on which filter to use is therefore based on the depth
of the veins you are trying to treat. The best absorption rate is at 420nm but as this
wavelength has minimal penetration (see above) it is unlikely to be the correct filter for
this treatment. If you look at the chart you can also see peaks in the absorption of light at
510nm and 560nm so it is likely that you will have the best success with one of these
filters.
Having a choice of filters available is therefore a major advantage when it comes to
selecting an IPL machine.
In the case of Spectrum and Apolo IPL systems we offer the following filters and
wavelengths:
Standard Filters Application areas
420 -1200nm Vascular, acne & pigment
480 -1200nm (opt) Vascular, pigment, Photorejuvenation
510 -1200nm Vascular, pigment, Photorejuvenation
560 -1200nm Vascular, pigment, Photorejuvenation
585 – 1200nm Vascular, pigment, Photorejuvenation
610 – 1200nm Hair reduction
640 -1200nm Hair reduction
690 –1200nm Hair reduction
755 -1200nm Hair reduction
There are many systems on the market which offer only fixed wavelengths and limit your
ability to tailor the treatment to your specific needs.
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G) EASE OF USE
Look at the machine that you are purchasing to see if the operating interface is easy to
use. There are several different systems across different machines some of which are
better than others. In some cases you have to input treatment parameters from tables
and this can be cumbersome and make it possible for you, or your staff, to make mistakes
resulting in bad clinical outcomes.
The Spectrum 2000 has a simple and professional user interface. The professional mode
gives the experienced user a blank page to set up any treatment profile that they wish. It
also has a simple programming mode which is suitable for 90% of operators where they
simply have to answer a few questions about the patient and the Spectrum will set up the
machine for treatment. If more effective treatment parameters are found through clinical
trials then the software is updated through a USB port on the control board.
F) TRAINING
This has been mentioned before but the best IPL system in the World will not produce the
desired results if you or your staff member has inadequate training!
G) RF IN CONJUNCTION WITH IPL
Recently there have been studies showing that RF in conjunction with IPL can have a
positive effect in treating hair reduction and in photorejuvenation treatments.
IPL + RF combine optical energy and bipolar radio frequency (RF). By incorporating
RF you can use lower levels of light energy making the treatment both safer and gentler.
However, keeping energy levels at the same level should result in more effective clinical
outcomes.
We know that RF will improve treatment outcomes for photorejuvenation but our real
interest is that it seems to give us a fighting chance of treating very fine, blonde and grey
hairs. We have no scientific reasoning behind this but we have observed noticeable
differences in clinical outcomes when we use RF in conjunction with IPL.
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Whilst clinical trials have shown positive results the science behind
the treatment has yet to be fully understood (particularly with hair
reduction). For the moment trials continue and at this time we are
unable to tell you with absolute certainty whether RF is a useful
addition to your IPL system or not but we are seeing some pretty
promising results!
F) THE NEED FOR CONDUCTIVE GELS
We have seen claims that IPL machines do not require the use of conductive gels because
a machine has an efficient cooling system that eliminates the need for the use of gel. We
agree with this claim when it comes to levels of comfort but those making the claims
clearly do not understand why conductive gel is used.
Your skin is not flat. The image below shows that it is a little like a mountain range with
valleys and peaks. The gel is used to fill the “cracks” so that there is 100% contact
between the IPL head and every part of the skin. It is as simple as that! Gel is also used
to reduce refraction.
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CRITICAL FACTORS TO REDUCE FREQUENCY AND SEVERITY OF
ADVERSE REACTIONS
Of equal importance to excellent clinical outcomes is the minimization of adverse
reactions.
A) INTEGRATED COOLING
As already discussed in the previous section, the ability to cool the skin, especially during
hair reduction therapy is critical to minimizing the potential for pain, redness, burns and
hyper/hypo-pigmentation. That is because the deeper the target tissue the more time it
takes the heat to dissipate.
As a result, if insufficient time is allowed for the heat to dissipate between shots you can
very easily build up temperature with each successive shot. So much so that the fluence
that would normally not cause any adverse effects now becomes the straw that breaks the
camels back.
Hence the ability to cool the skin rapidly dissipates this latent heat and minimizes the
chances of adverse effects due to overheating.
Despite this some distributors will tell you that contact cooling is not proven to reduce the
incidence of adverse reactions. The photo below speaks for itself!
All 3 shots were made at the same fluence
The only difference between the 3 is the skin temperature
By far the most effective system for cooling is Integrated Contact Cooling (ICC). While
there are several ways of producing ICC it is essential that your IPL machine has such a
system. Any other method (such as air or chilled gel) is simply not effective.
In the case of MagicSkin machines the Spectrum 2000 can cool the head to -4 degrees
whereas the Apolo Portable can only cool to -2 degrees.
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B) FILTERING
One of the chromophores most likely to cause adverse reactions is water. As water is
present everywhere in the skin, if an IPL emits light that is absorbed by water then there
is real potential to cause widespread damage.
Water begins to absorb light at a wavelength of 950nm. Hence any IPL that emits
wavelengths above 1200nm has the ability to produce adverse reactions. While contact
cooling through a good ICC can help minimize these effects it does not prevent them
from occurring.
In an effort to overcome the side effects of water absorption of light most (but not all)
IPL’s filter out wavelengths above 1200nm. These wavelengths are filtered out using an
infra-red filter or by way of the water jacket that also serves to cool the flash lamp. In
this way the systems ensure that the light directed to your skin only contains the
wavelengths that are relevant for the desired treatment.
The key point is that you should not purchase an IPL system that does not filter out
wavelengths above 1200nm.
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CRITICAL FACTORS TO OPTIMISE YOUR RETURN ON INVESTMENT
Like most other pieces of equipment for your salon an IPL represents a significant
financial investment. Once you have made your decision you are likely to be stuck in an
operating lease which will be extremely difficult to extricate yourself from. It is therefore
extremely important that you “get it right first time.”
Whilst clinical efficacy is paramount, we are in this business to make money so when you
are choosing which IPL machine is right for you, the financial viability and profitability
of each machine you are looking at will be a critical factor for the success or otherwise of
your new IPL business.
In short you are looking for the “biggest bang for your buck” which in turn will give you
the largest return on investment.
A) HIGHEST PROFIT PER SHOT
Every treatment head has a limited number of shots it can fire before it needs to be
replaced. Bearing in mind that an individual treatment will attract a fixed fee it follows
that the more treatments you can deliver per head, the higher your overall income will be.
If you take the income generated from a handle and divide it by the total revenue for that
handle and subtract the cost of the new handle you will come up with the:
PROFIT PER SHOT.
The profit per shot is a key measure of the profitability of any machine (although other
factors listed below are also important)
B) EQUIPMENT OPTIMISATION
Whilst the concept of the profit per shot is very important I would say the equipment
optimisation is equally as important.
The critical factor here is TIME. The longer a treatment takes to perform the less
customers you can treat in one day.
LESS TREATMENTS PER DAY = LOWER PROFITS
In addition, longer treatments tie up key staff and they are stuck with the IPL when they
could be performing other jobs. Critical factors here are:
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i) Repetition rate
Flash lamps are hungry beasts that require a great deal of energy to produce
therapeutic light. The way that IPL machines deliver these bursts of energy is
through their capacitors.
Without getting too technical capacitors are large, heavy electrical components that
draw electricity from your power point to store energy. This stored energy is then
rapidly discharged to fire the flash lamp.
In the same way that a camera flash has to recharge after being fired, so too,
capacitors have to recharge before they can fire their flash lamp. The time it takes
between IPL flashes (e.g, the time it takes for the capacitors to recharge) is called the
Repetition Rate. The shorter the interval between shots - the higher the repetition
rate.
Your profits will to a large extent depend on the repetition rate. The faster you can
flash, the less time the treatment takes and therefore the more customers you can
handle in a day.
Extending our camera example, a cheap camera will take ages to recharge the flash
where a professional camera will recharge the flash almost instantly… but they drain
the power to do so. Power is generated by the capacitors so logically the more
capacitors an IPL machine has the faster it will be able to recharge the handle.
A fast repetition rate without Integrated Skin Cooling is problematic. On the one
hand your machine will be available to flash every second but on the other you may
have to wait between flashes to allow the treatment area to cool.
Most distributors will give you the repetition rate either in seconds or in Hz.
This only tells part of the story. In reality the Apolo Portable has only two capacitors
as compared to the Spectrum 2000 which has four. This means that the Portable
machine will slow down on longer jobs where the more powerful Spectrum will keep
flashing every second regardless of the size of the job. Both have a discharge rate
listed of 1 second but we know that in reality the Spectrum 2000 will be almost twice
as fast as the Apolo Portable on longer jobs.
We have also seen situations where a machine will flash before the capacitors are
recharged completely. This can be disastrous for treatments as your machine will
flash but as the capacitors are not fully charged you will end up treating your patients
at a lower level than your machine has been programmed for, leading to
unsatisfactory results.
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In summary when you look at the claims of manufacturers that their machine will
flash every second look at the number of capacitors that the machine has and draw
your own conclusions.
A good indication as to the flash rate for longer jobs is the weight of the machine.
Generally speaking the heavier the machine the faster it will be.
Taking all of the above factors into account we can, by way of demonstration, calculate
the relative profitability per head of the Apolo Portable and the Spectrum 2000 machines:
On a larger area such as a back:
Spectrum Apolo
2000 Portable
Revenue per treatment $500.00 $500.00
Number of shots required 300 500
Cost per shot (shots per handle divided by cost per handle) 6.25c 6.25c
Cost of treatment $18.75 $31.25
Profit from treatment $481.25 $468.75
TIME FOR TREATMENT 45 minutes 60 minutes*
Revenue per hour $641/ hour $469/ hour
* If the machine slows down during larger jobs the difference between the two times can
be much greater. We have a client who cut her time for a back treatment from over two
hours to one hour because of the consistently fast flash rate on the Spectrum 2000.
On smaller areas such as underarm:
Professional Portable
Revenue per treatment $100.00 $100.00
Number of shots required 40 40
Cost per shot (shots per handle divided by cost per handle) 6.25c 6.25c
Cost of treatment $2.50 $2.50
Profit from treatment $97.50 $97.50
TIME FOR TREATMENT 20 minutes 20 minutes
Revenue per hour $292/ hour $292/ hour
As you can see the smaller machine is equally as efficient and profitable as the larger
machine on smaller jobs. However the larger spot size and faster continuous repetition
rate results in both higher profits and time savings when it comes to larger jobs.
ii) Range of wavelengths
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An IPL lamp can emit a range of wavelengths from 400nm to 1200nm. Within these
ranges a number of conditions can be treated. It follows that the more wavelengths your
IPL can produce the more treatments you can offer.
Basically the more treatments you can offer, the less it is likely your machine will have
any downtime. A wide range of wavelengths is a critical factor in optimising your IPL
machine.
Available wavelengths are:
420 Acne/vascular
480 Acne/vascular/pigmentation
510 Pigmentation/vascular/photorejuvenation
560 Vascular/pigmentation/photorejuvenation
610 Hair reduction /some collagen stimulation
640 Hair reduction /some collagen stimulation
690 Hair reduction (deeper hair)
755 Hair reduction in dark skin
The different wavelengths can be achieved through either separate handles (more cost) or
a filter system. Some IPL machines simply offer fixed wavelengths.
iii) Number of heads
Different machines come with a different number of heads. More heads results in greater
time efficiency but the more heads you have the better the value for money as
replacement heads are going to cost you $$$$.
If you have a machine with a filter system where all heads can be used for the same
treatment, the ability to switch heads and spot sizes easily during a treatment will
maximise your efficiency and reduce treatment times substantially.
iv) Spot sizes
Larger spot sizes mean less flashes for larger treatment areas such as backs. Less flashes
means less costs (each flash costs you money) but equally importantly less flashes means
less time on the job and more customers in a day!
You charge the customer the same $500 for his back but with a larger spot size your cost
for the treatment (the number of flashes) is lower and the time taken for the treatment is
less. It is a win win for your business!
v) Portability
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It makes sense that if you can take your machine to the customer or to different locations
this could increase your market and therefore your revenue. Portability is a double
edged sword though as it generally means lighter weight. Referring to the section on
capacitors and repetition rate above, this portability will come with a cost in terms of the
repetition rate. On the one hand you gain because of your portability; on the other you
lose because jobs will take longer because your machine will slow down in bigger jobs.
vi) Continuous working time
Some manufacturers will give you this in their specs and others will not. It is certainly a
question you should be asking when you select your IPL machine. Smaller (lighter)
machines with less capacitors will generally have a lower continuous working time. In
the case of the two machines we sell our Portable has a continuous working time of 4 -6
hours whilst the Spectrum is 12 -14 hours. It goes without saying that if you have a
machine that requires a break after 4 hours of work it will be less profitable than a
machine that can work all day without a break!
C) MARKETING SUPPORT
Obviously if a distributor provides you with marketing support your profits should
increase as a result. It is a relatively small factor to consider but is definitely worth a tick
when the supplier offers this free of charge.
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CRITICAL FACTORS TO MINIMISE PROFIT LEAKAGE
TREATMENT HEAD REPLACEMENT
The key factors to consider here are:
Number of heads
Life expectancy of heads
Cost of replacement heads/lamps
i) Number of heads
Obviously the more heads you get with your IPL machine the better value it is for
you.
At the time of writing you should make a profit of $1.50 - $2.00 per shot.
In the case of our machines the Spectrum has three handles compared with the
Portable which has one. Our handles are rated to 40,000 shots. This means with the
Portable you have ”stored revenue” of $60,000 against the Spectrum 2000 with three
handles of $180,000.
ii) Life expectancy of the heads
A head that can produce 100,000 shots per head is obviously better than a head that
will only produce 10,000 shots before it is replaced. The calculation is simple:
100,000 flashes per head; head costs $8,500. Cost per flash = $0.085
10,000 flashes per head; head cost $2,500. Cost per flash = $0.25
A significant difference!
A back can take up to 500 flashes for one job. At 8.5 cents per flash the cost to you
is $42.50. At 25 cents per flash it will cost you $125. It will not take long to eat up
your profits with this cost differential!
Be careful with claimed life expectancy of lamps. We have seen claims of 100,000
flashes using the same lamp as our machines use. We recommend up to 100,000
flashes per lamp (if the equipment is maintained per instructions). This is because
beyond that point the efficacy of the lamps is greatly diminished and you will not
treat the client as well as you could, which could lead to a loss of business.
There are only a few manufacturers of IPL lamps in the world. Most lamps have
similar power outputs and life expectancy so beware of exaggerated claims when it
comes to the life of a lamp.
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iii) Cost of replacement lamps/heads
Obviously the cost per flash is dependant on the cost of replacing the lamp or head.
Use the same calculation as above for calculating the cost per flash.
Be careful that your distributor tells you the cost of both the lamp and the whole
treatment head. Sometimes treatment heads are classified as consumable items and
have a limited life span.
Make sure that you are not in for a nasty surprise down the line by asking the
following questions:
The expected life of the handle
The cost of replacing the handle as opposed to just the lamp
iv) Cost of replacement filters
Every filter has a life expectancy. Make sure that you ask how much the replacement
filters will cost and their life expectancy. This is another area where potential
financial shocks await you if you have not asked the question!
It is also worth asking if the sapphire crystals used in the machine are real or man-
made. In general real sapphire crystals will have a longer life expectancy.
BREAKDOWN/TECHNICAL SUPPORT
Obviously with any machine the profitability will be affected by the reliability of your
IPL machine. It is difficult to include this in the profitability calculation but it is a factor
that must be taken into account with any decision that you make.
Ask your potential suppliers how they deal with breakdowns and the warranty term that
they offer.
It is also worth asking your supplier for a price list of spare parts. We have seen
occasions where salon owners have been charged incredible amounts for spare parts and
they are left with no option but to pay the price asked if they are to continue using their
machine.
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