As published in “Plastics Engineering” magazine, a publication of the Society of Plastics Engineers. Some of us are old enough to remember how fragile glass blood bottles didn’t always make it to their intended destination. Others maybe remember them hanging precariously next to the surgeons in TV shows such as M*A*S*H. Too often even a…
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Ever stop and look around during a doctor or hospital visit? Even a cursory look reveals dozens of medical instruments and hygienic tools made with plastics: protective examination gloves, sterile bandages and gauze, syringes that help prevent infection, IV tubes and bags that guard against contamination—all made possible by plastics. Frankly, plastics so pervade the…
Read More…We all know that kids love the water. Bodysurfing in the ocean. Cannonballing into the swimming pool. Diving off the pier into the lake. Waterskiing with the family. Kids and water go together like summertime and ice cream. But sometimes they forget about safety. As an adult, it’s difficult to relax and enjoy the water…
Read More…Don Schoendorfer was vacationing in Morocco years ago when he saw a disabled woman drag herself across a dirt road, ignored by the crowds and barely evading traffic. Schoendorfer later learned that in developing countries, an estimated 100 million disabled people need wheelchairs but cannot afford them. These disabilities are due to many causes, including…
Read More…Flu season. For many of us, aches, pains, sneezing and coughing will interrupt our holidays and winter plans. But we’re not defenseless. Many recent advances in flu fighting, including some made possible by plastics, can help us avoid the flu—and recover more quickly. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend a yearly flu…
Read More…There’s nothing quite like ice-skating with loved ones to create fun holiday memories. Thanks to innovations in plastics, you won’t need a frozen pond or a chilly outdoor rink. You now can skate on plastic “ice” that never melts, indoors or outdoors—regardless of the season! How’s it possible to skate on plastics? Well, on natural…
Read More…Adhesive bandage strips recognized by kids everywhere are well known for protecting cuts and scrapes from the elements. With roots in homemade fabrics and gauzes, innovations in plastics helped adhesive bandages to become staples in medicine cabinets and first-aid kits across the country. Bandages in the early 1920s were made predominately of cotton, gauze and…
Read More…Natural disasters such as hurricanes and earthquakes often destroy sources of clean drinking water. An innovative solution — in the form of a plastic pouch — provides lifesaving relief to survivors of these disasters. The HydroPackTM is a thin, 12 ounce plastic pouch that contains an electrolyte and nutrient-rich powder. When dropped into contaminated water,…
Read More…This article originally appeared in the December 2010 issue of the Plastics Make it PossibleSM Newsletter. The World Health Organization estimates that two-thirds of the approximately 270 million hearing-impaired people around the globe live in developing nations. Yet fewer than 10 million hearing aids are manufactured annually—the costs simply outweigh the demand from the poor…
Read More…According to the World Health Organization, there were nearly 250 million cases of malaria worldwide in 2008. An estimated one million people in Africa die of malaria each year – mostly children. That’s one death every 45 seconds. Plastic nets treated with insecticides that ward off malaria-carrying mosquitoes save countless lives and are one of…
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