St. Wendel
Comprehensive environmental protection program at St. Wendel
Our St. Wendel facility is the international leader in the development and production of dialyzers and other disposable medical products for all types of kidney replacement therapy. Environmental protection plays an important role in the development, production and transport of all our products. As a result, we use the most environmentally-friendly and recyclable raw materials and supplies available, implement innovative and low-emission production technologies and use new, intelligent transportation concepts.
Environmentally-friendly products and methods
- Our bag and tube systems are made from PVC-free Biofine® polymer. Biofine® is a polymer developed by Fresenius research scientists in St. Wendel containing only carbon and hydrogen (polyolefin). Products made from Biofine® can either be recycled or disposed of in an environmentally-friendly way.
- Fresenius scientists in St. Wendel have also developed the FX Class, a new generation of dialyzers offering improved performance and bio-compatibility. The reduced size and weight of the dialyzers has led to a significant reduction in the amount of raw materials required as well as a significant reduction in treatment-related waste at dialysis clinics.
- Sterilization of dialyzers and dialysis bags has also become more environmentally-friendly thanks to the “inline” method developed by Fresenius engineers. Inline sterilization uses steam or hot water and replaces traditional sterilization with ethylene oxide.
- Plastic production waste is collected separately or sorted. Up to 95 percent of plastic waste is either recycled or used in thermal recycling.
- Finished products are increasingly being transported in our own re-fitted double-decker trucks which offer a significantly larger capacity. This means a reduction in the number of loads and a resultant reduction in transport-related environmental damage.
Certified environmental management system
The facility’s environmental management system has been certified in accordance with ISO 14001 since 1999. Our engineers are constantly working on ways to further reduce energy and raw materials use during production as well as on the reduction of production-related emissions. Specific goals are established annually in our Quality and Environment Program and then implemented.