HUDDERSFIELD'S hospital trust has teamed up with two other NHS organisations to makesure surgical instruments are clean.

The Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Trust has joined forces with Bradford Teaching Hospitals and Leeds Teaching Hospitals to set up a central unit in Pudsey to decontaminate and sterilise surgical instruments.

The multi-million-pound unit will use the latest methods to guarantee stringent infection control and decontamination standards.

The service - being introduced in line with Government guidance - will also track the life cycle of instruments from purchase to disposal.

The process will also detail how they were used and on which patients.

Sheffield-based company B Braun Medical, has been chosen to run the service for the three trusts. Len Wright, the scheme's project director, said: "This is an important stage in the process of transferring this service.

"We look forward to working in partnership with B Braun Medical to draw up the final agreement."

He added: "We will be working hard together over the next few months to ensure the mooth transfer of the service."

The service is expected to be up and running by 2007.

Jonathan Byrd, business development director for B Braun Medical, said: "We are delighted to have been chosen to provide decontamination services on this exciting project.

"We look forward to working in partnership with the three trusts and their existing decontamination staff.

"We are currently providing decontamination services from 14 facilities across Europe and are confident of a successful partnership in this project," added Mr Byrd.