SOUTHEAST NONWOVENS
Southeast Nonwovens is supplying recycled carbon fibers to create durable consumer goods like computer cases. They’re also exploring new products made from banana, coconut and other natural sources.
As a leading manufacturer of nonwovens-based PPE and sterilization products in the healthcare industry, Owens & Minor is focused on improving the health of communities by limiting the environmental impacts of our operations and value chain. The company’s BLUE RENEW* program is proving the success of their efforts.
About 5.9 million tons of waste1 are generated from hospitals each year in the U.S. By recycling sterilization wrap through the BLUE RENEW* program, we’re helping to bring those numbers down.
Carlos Soto, Head of Global Manufacturing and Procurement, Owens & Minor
BLUE RENEW* launched in 2010 as a sterilization wrap recycling program designed to strike a balance between protecting the patient and the environment. Through the program, used, clean HALYARD* Sterilization Wrap is collected and turned into resin pellets to create products like storage totes, bedpans and basins. This initiative gives wrap a second life. Each year, nearly 300 healthcare facilities in North America divert more than 4 million pounds of wrap from landfills thanks to this program.3
In Lexington, NC where HALYARD* Sterilization Wrap is manufactured, Owens & Minor is also proud of this facility for operating above 95% landfill-free.
Owens & Minor provides complimentary professional on-site consulting services to educate and train facility staff as well as monitor and report annually on the hospital’s BLUE RENEW* performance.
- “More Needs To Be Done To Prioritize Climate Change,” Health Affairs Blog, February 25, 2016. DOI:10.1377/hblog20160225. 053279
- Data on File. 2016 Halyard Health
- Data on File. 2016 Halyard Health
*Registered Trademark or Trademark of O&M Halyard or its affiliates
Through the BLUE RENEW* program, medical facilities across the United States are now recycling their used, clean HALYARD* Sterilization Wrap made from recyclable #5 polypropylene fabric, saving U.S. hospitals more than $280,000.3
Learn more and apply for the program here.
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