EANS-News

Semperit AG Holding / European innovation award EARTO 2016 goes to Semperit and PCCL

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Research & Development

Last night, Semperit and the Polymer Competence Center Leoben GmbH
(PCCL) received the European innovation award EARTO 2016 in Brussels
for the development of Sempermed® Syntegra UV, the first
anti-allergenic surgical glove worldwide. With innovative production
technology, unique product characteristics and an energy-efficient
manufacturing process, both development partners prevailed against a
total of 35 competitors. A unique feature of this product is that the
surgical glove - which is made from polyisoprene, a material similar
to natural latex - is cured using UV light instead of potentially
allergenic chemical accelerators.

"We are very happy that we were able to bring the EARTO, the most
important European innovation award, to Austria. This proves the high
innovation power of Semperit. With the Sempermed® Syntegra UV, we
have succeeded in developing a surgical glove that prevents allergic
reactions. Since it was brought onto the market in 2013, it has
enabled us to contribute to an improvement in the quality of life of
millions of professionals in the European healthcare sector," says
Richard Ehrenfeldner, Chief Operating Officer of Sempermed. There was
also great joy about the award at the UAR associated company PCCL,
says Martin Payer, Chairman of the Board: "For us, the EARTO is a
major recognition of our research work for several years. Our goal
was a results-oriented, efficient research that we were able to
realise in the best way with Semperit as our partner. The next
innovation by PCCL and Semperit is already in the pipeline." Wilfried
Enzenhofer, CEO of Upper Austrian Research GmbH, emphasises: "We are
very proud that a research cooperation of Upper Austrian Research
received the desired EARTO innovation award 2016. This proves once
again that the research performance of the UAR Group is at the
highest international level."

CO2footprint reduction Alongside the innovative production
technology, the EARTO judges were also convinced by the unique
properties of the Sempermed® Syntegra UV. The glove that is gentle on
the skin is equivalent to a premium latex surgical glove in terms of
tactile sense, wearer comfort and fit.A further factor was the
energy- efficient manufacturing process, which by means of lower
temperatures and higher throughput rates leads to a significant