Online market dialogue on solutions to recycle single-use sanitary safety materials
The work started by the BRINC project to support the Institut Català de la Salut (ICS) in its procurement journey to reuse and recycle single-use sanitary safety materials continues!
Following the workshop during which ICS presented its needs, experience and challenges, a market dialogue took place on 17 October 2023. It gathered public authorities and suppliers to discuss solutions for recycling of single-use sanitary safety material.
In this market dialogue between the ICS and companiesm participants heard more about the ICS' challenges and discover (potential) solutions under development or already existing on the market.
Recording
Background
To ensure the safety of patients and healthcare personnel, large quantities of health safety materials and single-use personal protection are used, which must be discarded once they have fulfilled their purpose. Institut Català de la Salut (ICS) is the biggest public healthcare provider in Catalonia with 8 Hospitals, 332 Primary Care Centres, 617 rural Medical offices and 52.000 professionals and consume large quantities of disposable sanitary safety items.
On average per month:
- 60,000 gowns
- 30,000 aprons
- 200,000 surgical drapes, sheets, and other cloths
- 1,000,000 masks
- 17,000,000 gloves
- 400,000 caps, pants, gloves, and other protective equipment
- A total of approx. 13,500 tonnes/year.
After having arranged an online workshop in June to learn more about the reuse and recycling of single-use sanitary safety materials representatives of ICS are now interested in a dialogue with relevant companies to discuss existing solutions and solutions under development for recycling of single-use sanitary safety material and therefore we are contacting you. ISC's goal with the workshop is to learn more about the current and potential solutions and solution providers available on the market and obtain valuable information to further develop and refine the functional specifications in the upcoming procurement.
The following aspects are of importance:
- The different sanitary safety items (gloves, masks, aprons etc.) are not sorted into different fractions but mixed.
- The materials are of plastic origin, but of different types (polyethylene, polypropylene, latex, nitrile, vinyl, neoprene, etc.) which can be mixed.
- The materials have had a sanitary use and are classified as Group II sanitary waste, with a low biological risk, but may need a biological decontamination treatment before being valued.
The BRINC - Brokering cross-border innovation through clusters project brings together Public Authorities (PAs), who are looking for circular solutions, with companies. In this way, the PAs gain knowledge about which products and solutions the companies can offer, and/or the insight that their needs can be met in ways that they were previously unaware of.
