Adopting ROCOM
Connecting systems is the starting point. Creating value also takes clear responsibilities, prepared teams and well-managed workflows.
ROCOM provides a shared foundation for coordinating robots, people, infrastructure and tasks in healthcare. It helps participating providers describe how their systems interact, where authority sits and what evidence supports their declared capabilities.
What ROCOM enables
The four control planes bring complementary capabilities:
- Robot: Connect robot capabilities and execution status through robot and fleet-management systems.
- Infrastructure: Coordinate access to doors, lifts and shared resources through the responsible building and access-control systems.
- Workforce: Connect availability, competence and allocation, respecting the distinct responsibilities of people and robots.
- Task: Share operational needs, priorities, progress and completion evidence across participating systems.
Shared contracts and conformance evidence can support integration, procurement and local assurance. The value comes from applying these capabilities to a defined operational need.
What your organisation brings
Adoption should begin with an agreed operating model. Responsibilities may be shared with service providers, but they should be explicit.
| Responsibility | Questions to resolve |
|---|---|
| Workflow ownership | Who owns the service, its outcomes and changes to the workflow? |
| Decision authority | Who may assign work, authorise access, change priorities or approve exceptions? |
| Operational support | Who responds when a robot, building service or integration becomes unavailable? |
| Human involvement | Which decisions require a person, and how are staff trained and supported? |
| Local assurance | Who reviews risks, security, data handling and readiness for the intended environment? |
| Performance and improvement | Who measures results, investigates incidents and approves changes? |
Existing organisational roles can fulfil these responsibilities. Adoption does not necessarily require a new management structure.
Using ROCOM with your chosen platform
ROCOM is intended for use across implementations and providers. It does not require a particular orchestration or management product.
An organisation may use an integrated platform, existing operational systems or a combination of services. The chosen arrangement still needs to provide the coordination, oversight and support required by its workflows.
The standard defines shared requirements and interfaces. Products and service providers turn them into usable operational capabilities; the organisation establishes accountability and puts them into practice.
What conformance tells you
A conformance statement identifies the requirements an implementation claims to meet, its scope and supporting evidence. Self-declaration and independent certification are distinct.
Neither establishes, by itself, that every local workflow is ready for deployment or that operational benefits have been achieved. Assess the declared scope alongside your environment, organisational readiness and intended outcomes.
ROCOM is under development. Check the status of the relevant specification and certification arrangements when evaluating a claim. Draft proposals describe possible future requirements.
Start with one workflow
Choose a specific need, such as delivering supplies to a ward. Identify the participating systems, responsible people and required permissions. Agree how exceptions and service interruptions will be handled.
Establish a baseline and measurable outcomes—for example delivery reliability, staff time spent coordinating work and time to resolve exceptions. Test the complete workflow, review the evidence with the affected teams and expand when the results support it.
This page provides adoption guidance. Normative requirements are defined in the applicable ROCOM specification documents.