The micro-grinder being cleaned after a treatment cycle.
CAY HILL–St. Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) recently installed a medical waste-processing micro-grinder on its premises in order to safely treat its medical waste.
SMMC stated in a press release on Tuesday that the micro-grinder, the Sterilwave 250, can process up to 50 kilograms (kg) of medical waste per hour and turns medical waste into sterile (non-infectious) municipal waste. The medical waste treatment process entails first grinding the medical waste to small particles, after which the small particles are further processed via microwave treatment and heated up to 110 degrees Celsius, at which point all waste becomes sterile. “The benefit of this technology is that the medical waste becomes sterile, dry and stable for easy further logistics. The medical waste is greatly reduced in volume (by 80 per cent) and weight (by 20 per cent) and there are zero polluting emissions for the environment when operating the micro-grinder,” SMMC stated.
SMMC’s Head of Maintenance and Facilities Michael Sargeant lauded the arrival and installation of the micro-grinder and stated, “Here at SMMC, we are constantly looking for ways to increase efficiency in our operations. In the absence of a functioning incinerator at the landfill, SMMC had to make use of third parties for incineration of certain [non-bodily material – Ed.] medical waste. Not only was this very costly, it was also not a logistically viable solution.”
“SMMC still makes use of crematoria for the proper disposal of bodily materials. However, with the installation of a micro-grinder at SMMC, we can safely and swiftly process the bulk of our medical waste on site, which reduces the risk of contamination and reduces its volume while doing so – a win-win-win situation, in our view,” he concluded.
A technician from the Sterilwave Micro-Grinder’s manufacturer, Bertin Medical Waste concluded a week-long installation and validation of the equipment. An intense training was also provided for SMMC’s technical team and operators.
According to SMMC, the Sterilwave Micro-Grinder is an on-site medical waste-processing solution which reduces the risk of contamination in comparison with incineration and landfills. Sterilwave has been registered and approved by health and environmental ministries in Europe, Asia, Africa, the Middle East and America. The uniqueness of Sterilwave is linked to its innovative microwave technology and high level of treatment respecting both the environment and security processes.
The newly installed micro-grinder at SMMC.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/92419-smmc-installs-new-waste-processing-micro-grinder
View comments
Hide comments