Knowledge Hub · Source Return Service
The AERB facility licence closes only when every sealed source has either a current location or a documented disposal route. Retiring a Co-57 flood source or a Ge-68 line source is less a physical-transport problem than a paperwork problem — decommissioning documents, decay-store coordination, AERB transport manifest, final disposal certificate. This page walks what each document is for and how the Saxsons Source Return Service delivers them.
Why this matters
A paperwork problem first
Returning a sealed source is not principally a physical-transport task. The radiation-safety officer needs a signed decommissioning record, a chain-of-custody log, a final activity-on-collection figure and a disposal certificate to update the AERB facility licence inventory. Saxsons assembles the documentation package — shipping manifest, source identification, AERB transport paperwork, final disposal certificate — and the physical pickup follows the paperwork.
Based on: AERB Atomic Energy (Radiation Protection) Rules 2004; AERB Safety Code for Nuclear Medicine Facility.
Read source ↗Decay-store coordination
AERB-licensed nuclear-medicine facilities hold spent sources in an in-house decay store until activity drops to an agreed transport-level threshold. For Co-57 (T½ 272 d) the dwell is months; for Cs-137 / Co-60 / Ba-133 the source is collected at end-of-useful-life, not after full decay. Saxsons logistics times the pickup against the source's activity profile and the facility's decay-store rotation cadence.
Based on: AERB Safety Code for Nuclear Medicine Facility — decay-store section.
Read source ↗Same supplier, supply and return
When the source that originally arrived through Saxsons returns through Saxsons, the inventory line that opens at consignment closes at disposal. The activity-on-calibration, certificate of analysis, AERB import licence and final disposal certificate all live in one supplier dossier. The radiation-safety officer does not run two parallel paper trails for supply and disposal.
Based on: Saxsons supply-and-return inventory framing.
Read source ↗India-wide logistics
Operated in India by Saxsons Healthcare Pvt. Ltd. with AERB-licensed transport partners. Pickup coverage spans the major nuclear-medicine centres across India. The transport leg does not depend on overseas freight scheduling and is not subject to import-export complications for a source that needs to leave a hospital cleanly.
Based on: Saxsons logistics network; AERB-licensed transport carriers framework.
Read source ↗AERB inspection narrative
At an AERB inspection, the strongest narrative is: every sealed source on the licence has either a current activity-and-location record or a documented decommissioning route. A retired source with no return certificate is a regulatory-risk flag. The Source Return Service supplies the missing-link documentation so the inspection dossier closes cleanly on every line.
Based on: AERB facility-inspection expectations; AERB Safety Code section on source inventory.
Read source ↗Incident-collection capability
A source removed from service due to a clinical incident — suspected damage, wipe-test failure, regulatory action — requires controlled-collection logistics and AERB-aligned chain-of-custody. The Source Return Service supports this case alongside routine end-of-life returns. The collection is logged, the documentation is preserved, the AERB notification chain runs cleanly.
Based on: AERB Atomic Energy (Radiation Protection) Rules 2004 — incident reporting framework.
Read source ↗The AERB and ISO documents that frame sealed-source end-of-life logistics in India.
Indian regulatory framework for sealed-source import, handling, decay-store and disposal.
AERB framework for nuclear-medicine facility licensing, including sealed-source inventory, decay-store and disposal expectations.
International sealed-source classification standard governing leak, temperature, pressure and impact ratings on transport.
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