TAIPEI (The China Post) — An environmentally-conscious Taiwanese corporation and factory, Thai Taffeta (興懋), recently made headlines in Thailand for using recycled plastic bottles to make Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
The second-generation successor of the Taiwanese company, Supoj Chaiwilai (賴建明), explained that Thai Taffeta had already succeeded in using recycled plastic bottles to produce various products in the past.
After the COVID-19 outbreak, the Thai government reached out in the hopes that Thai Taffeta could create reusable PPE which would be purchased by the government so that it could both help medical staff and also protect the environment.
According to the Central News Agency (中央社), Chaiwilai pointed out that the cooperation between the government and the company had gone quite smoothly, which is when they considered expanding to help more people.
Later, they became partners with various non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to provide more PPE to medical staff workers, and the action was lauded by many.
The project was so well-received by the public that even residents located at northern Chiang Mai (清邁) and those at Satun (沙敦) came together to help donate recycled bottles to the company located in 羅勇府 (Rayong).
Chaiwilai revealed that the World Health Organization (WHO, 世界衛生組織) has also expressed interest in the project, and added that the PPE could be reused after different recycling processes.
He further explained that the PPE could be worn by medical staff around 20 times before it can be disinfected and given to those working in laboratories; afterward, it can be given to garbage collectors.
Chaiwilai remarked that the PPE made from recycled bottles costs around US$15 (around NT$417) and can be used up to 20 times. Compared with the general PPE clothing we see every day, which costs between US$7 to US$10 (NT$195 to NT$278), the PPE created from recycled materials can play a greater role.
At present, one million sets of PPE have been purchased by local hospitals and the Thai government, and another 100,000 sets have been donated through NGOs.
Reusable PPE is still quite a new concept for Thai health care workers, as most still prefer to use disposable protective clothing.
Hospitals do not necessarily have professional cleaning and disinfection equipment, so they must explain it carefully to health care workers in the early stage, Chaiwilai explained. However, he believes that this is a worthwhile project in the long run.