Health and biomedical

Saint-Gobain supplies materials for the most critical medical applications. The keywords for this segment are reliability, safety and compliance with the most exacting standards. The Group also designs and develops products for habitat that help improve air quality and so inhabitants’ health. 

High-performance plastics serving health 

Hospitals, the pharmaceuticals industry and research laboratories: Saint-Gobain products are found throughout the medical sector. 

Saint-Gobain develops high-performance plastics specifically for the health market. The Group, with its Life Sciences Business Unit is one of the world’s leading suppliers of polymer components for pharmaceutical, medical and biotechnology markets. 

The materials developed, with unique barrier and biocompatibility properties, and allowing for the transmission of oxygen, are also used in scientific laboratories and for the large-scale production of vaccines. These single-use solutions have high growth potential, as they are increasingly used to replace systems made from stainless steel.

Saint-Gobain is counting on breakthrough innovations for both materials and processes. From the outset, the Group also implements a co-development approach with pharmaceutical majors and medical customers, as each new medication implies a new process using new components. 

Other Saint-Gobain products help keep you healthy!

Saint-Gobain products are particularly suited for use in healthcare establishments given their properties targeting the health safety of our living environment.

Saint-Gobain solutions

Plastics

The Group develops high-performance plastics for the biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical markets. The reference leader with its Tygon^®, C-Flex^® and Sani-Tech^® brands, Saint-Gobain supplies a wide range of products (tubings, bags, etc) serving the most critical medical applications. They are molded or extruded as standard or custom-made products in thermoplastics, silicon, fluoropolymers or elastomers. 

Paintable fabrics 

Saint-Gobain Adfors paintable wall coverings are designed using high-performance fabrics woven from glass yarn and provide health properties that are particularly suited to medical contexts. Novelio^® Mold-X contains an active antibacterial agent that contributes to health safety. In particular, it is used in hospital and clinic patient rooms, rest rooms and unventilated areas in health buildings. The Novelio^® Clean Air wall covering improves the health of the indoor atmosphere by absorbing 70% of the volatile organic compounds released by cleaning products and particle-board furniture.

Scintillators 

Saint-Gobain Crystals manufactures scintillators for the medical imaging industry. They facilitate and improve the detection and diagnosis of certain diseases. 

Ceilings

With its acoustic ceiling tiles, Saint-Gobain Ecophon provides customized solutions for health establishments, helping reduce stress levels among hospital staff and patients. The air quality inside health buildings is also a major concern. In response to this need, Saint-Gobain Gyproc developed the Activ’Air^® technology for its plasterboard, which treats indoor air by neutralizing formaldehydes, one of the main volatile organic compounds.

In pictures

External growth: Developments in the health segment

• Twin-Bay Medical (United States) manufactures, among other products, flexible tube retainers and single-use components for the biopharmaceutical industry. 
• American Fluoroseal Corporation (United States) pioneered the design of fluorinated ethylene propylene bags for medical use. The company also developed sterile sampling systems for pharmaceutical manufacturing processes. 
• Applied Bioprocess Containers (United States) specializes in the design and manufacture of single-use storage bags, designed for the preparation, collection, storage and transportation of biopharmaceutical liquids. 
• LS Kunststofftechnologie (Germany) manufactures high-performance polymer components for the medical segment, as well as the automotive and manufacturing industries.

Fluid systems: Addition to the Sani-Tech range 

Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics has launched its Sani-Tech^® Ultra-HP high-purity hose. These solutions are suitable for bioprocesses, fluid transfer, and automated facility cleaning and sanitization systems without the need for disconnection.

Surgery: OmniSeal^® seals for sutures

Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics supplies OmniSeal^® spring energized seals for the world’s only battery-powered endoscopic stapler that is fully automated and reusable.