BD (NYSE:BDX) announced today that it formed the Sustainable Medical Technology Institute to focus on its environmental impact.
Franklin Lakes, New Jersey-based BD’s Sustainable Medical Technology Institute will bring together the company’s researchers and engineers along with quality, regulatory, policy and operational expertise to focus on reducing the environmental impact of its product portfolio.
According to a news release, the focus will center around three areas: adopting sustainable product design strategies, developing and deploying sustainable sterilization technologies and addressing materials of concern (MOC).
BD said the institute will serve as an example of advancing the world of health by prioritizing high-quality, safe products for patients while furthering the company’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategy.
“As part of our ESG strategy, we made commitments in specific areas where we see the most opportunity for BD to create meaningful, measurable change over the next decade,” BD VP of Sustainability and Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) Maureen Mazurek said in the release. “In order to achieve these commitments, we established a set of goals to track and measure our success, and this includes how to reduce the environmental impact of our product portfolio and address our customers’ sustainability needs. These priorities led us to form the Sustainable Medical Technology Institute.”
BD’s new institute will operate in North America, Europe and Asia with collaborations throughout cross-functional teams within the company’s business units.
Initial efforts include reestablishing a set of minimum environmental and human health criteria for new products and product changes aligned with the company’s 2030+ ESG commitments and goals, as well as identifying new ways to reduce, reuse, recycle or replace materials.
“By empowering our teams to tap into deep expertise in areas like engineering and materials science, coupled with access to breakthrough research, technologies, and government and academic partnerships, we are well-positioned to be the best environmental stewards of our portfolio,” BD Director of Sustainability R&D and Director of the institute Dr. Amit Limaye said. “It is our vision to create a strategic roadmap that will be integral across the organization, demonstrating how an ethical and sustainable company can drive growth, while meeting patient and customer needs in the most environmentally sustainable way possible.”
