BD Creates Sustainable Medical Technology Institute

BD has launched the Sustainable Medical Technology Institute, a model of practice within the organization that will bring together BD researchers and engineers, as well as quality, regulatory, policy and operational expertise, to focus on reducing the environmental impact of the company’s product portfolio in three areas, including adopting sustainable product design strategies, developing and deploying sustainable sterilization technologies, and addressing materials of concern (MOC).
 
The Institute will serve as an example of how the company continues to advance the world of health by prioritizing high-quality, safe products for patients, while furthering its 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,” said Maureen Mazurek, vice president, sustainability and environmental health and safety (EHS) at BD. “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.”
 
Dr. Amit Limaye, director of the Sustainable Medical Technology Institute and director of sustainability research and development at BD, added, “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. 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.”
 
The Institute will operate in North America, Europe and Asia, and will collaborate with cross-functional teams within the company’s business units, inclusive of research and development, regulatory, quality, policy and operations roles, with the goal of ensuring accountability and a streamlined approach to sustainability efforts, as well as further address sustainability needs within the industry and global regulatory bodies.
 
Key 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, and identifying new ways to reduce, reuse, recycle or replace materials. These efforts will inform the company’s product life cycle roadmap and enable adoption of a sustainable-by-design product development process.