Harrogate Hospital introduced PPE recycling technology
It's one of five hospitals in the UK turning used masks and gowns into school chairs
Last updated 13th Apr 2021
Harrogate Hospital is one of five hospitals that have started turning discarded PPE into reusable plastic blocks which can be made into things like chairs.
They're using machines developed in Cardiff which re-mould items such as gowns, curtains and single-use masks to be turned into metre-long blocks on site.as single-use masks.
They are then collected, processed and redeveloped into a range of new products including school chairs and toolboxes.
The other hospital trusts involved are: St Woolos Hospital in Newport, Wales, Queens Hospital in Burton, Gloucestershire Royal Hospital and the Royal Cornwall Hospital are all using the machines.
11 more NHS hospitals are due to get the machines.
Matthew Rapson is the director of Thermal Compaction Group Ltd that converts used PPE from hospitals into reusable materials.
"We have a number of hospital trusts using our machines to specifically to take out the plastics and also face masks which have become a huge problem in the current pandemic. Take Royal Cornwall Hospital for example, the trust is using 10,000 masks a day."
It's estimated around 55,000 tonnes of plastic PPE has been thrown away in the past year.