Three Companies Join Healthcare Plastics Recycling Council

The Healthcare Plastics Recycling Council (HPRC), headquartered in St. Paul, Minn., has reported that Baxter, Eastman Chemical Co. and Philips have joined the organization as members. The goal of the HPRC is to enable sustainable, cost-effective recycling solutions for plastic products and materials used in the delivery of healthcare.

“HPRC is seeking to affect plastics recycling from product design and manufacturing through product use, disposal and recycle,” says Tod Christenson, director of HPRC. “We are able to tackle this value chain approach through the unique technical knowledge and resources of our members. Baxter’s expertise in product design, Eastman’s strengths in plastic resins and Philips’ innovations in patient care will greatly contribute to plastics recycling solution development.”

Projects underway for HPRC this year include implementation of their recently published Design Guidelines for Optimal Hospital Plastics Recycling among member companies, initiation of several pilot studies with healthcare organizations, development of an economic viability modeling tool for implementing recycling programs, and material testing and analysis of the technical limitations in plastics processing.

HPRC now comprises 11 companies: Baxter, BD, Cardinal Health, DuPont, Eastman, Engineered Plastics, Hospira, Johnson & Johnson, Kimberly Clark, Philips and Waste Management.