Unitax, a pharmaceutical logistics company distributing coronavirus vaccine to hospitals, care homes and vaccination centres throughout Germany, has co-operated with Schaumplast and BASF to do so sustainably.
Schaumaplast
Thermocon vaccine boxes made from Styropor BMB have an improved environmental profile
Under the name Thermocon, Schaumaplast develops and produces passive (non-electric) cooling systems for the pharmaceutical industry. The lightweight thermal boxes can be fitted with special cooling elements for almost any temperature range and for different volumes.
This flexibility — in terms of size and cooling range — is becoming ever more important in coronavirus vaccine logistics, as vaccines in temperature ranges of –70 °C, –5 °C to –25 °C, and 2–8 °C increasingly have to be delivered at the same time.
Sustainability is a consideration for Unitax — an aspect that Schaumaplast was also able to satisfy as the company provides packaging made from alternative raw materials, but with the same high-quality properties of conventional plastic solutions.
“This ‘green’ box fits our corporate philosophy and has double the benefits, so to speak—with its reliably refrigerated content and its housing,” said Unitax managing director, André Reich.
The boxes are made of biomass-balanced Styropor from BASF and have an improved environmental profile.
“We are the first processor of this sustainable material in the packaging sector to be certified by the German technical inspection authority, TÜV,” stated Markus Hoffmann, managing director of the Schaumaplast Group.
BASF replaces fossil raw materials with renewable resources, such as bio-naphtha or biogas. These products, which are derived from organic waste or waste vegetable oils, are used in the BASF Production Verbund at the start of the manufacturing process. The biomass-balanced share is arithmetically allocated to the end products such as Styropor Biomass Balance (BMB) via a certified process.
“Styropor BMB is one of our company’s two new, mass-balanced, resource-efficient Styropor developments. We are, therefore, not only ensuring the optimal insulating properties of the cooler boxes, but also helping to reduce the carbon footprint of our products. Moreover, fossil raw materials such as naphtha and natural gas can now be replaced with mixed plastic waste that has been chemically treated. This also benefits the environment,” says Klaus Ries, head of BASF’s Styrenics business in Europe.