Alpha Solway has created the innovative sustainable solution for personal protective equipment waste.
In a partnership with Spill Defence Manufacturing, the firm’s scrap material is being turned into absorbent, disposable mop heads or ‘socks’.
More than 40,000 kgs of PPE offcuts are now being recycled each month from production at Annan and Dumfries, as well as from a site at Golborne in England. And the number is expected to double over the coming months.
The cleaning products are distributed to hospitals around the UK and used to keep operating theatres clean and hygienic.
The PPE offcuts can also be recycled into spill kits and booms used across a wide range of industries.
Alpha Solway director Steven Binnie said: “Unprecedented demand for protective equipment for healthcare sectors since the start of the pandemic, has really accelerated our UK-production of respiratory PPE. Inevitably this has resulted in a large amount of PPE off-cuts at our factories which we have been determined to use sustainably.
“We’re very pleased that the offcuts can be recycled with a real purpose that further supports the NHS.
“Thanks to Spill Defence, we’re able to create a sustainable solution to further help hospitals during the fight against Covid-19. We’re passionate about continuing to create and develop sustainable solutions across the business.”
Spill Defence Manufacturing Ltd director Richard Smith added: “We at SDM are very happy to be part of the joint venture of the sustainability program with Alpha Solway. It fits in perfectly with our ethos of recycling production waste into spill absorption products. The added beauty is that it is all UK produced.”
