Periods of crisis are also often times of innovation. The Irish paper group Smurfit Kappa has developed a new range of cardboard products to combat the Covid-19 virus and will make all its designs available free of charge.
Made in France, the first items in the Design for Help range are corrugated cardboard partitions. These partitions can be used in the workplace to protect employees who are close to each other, but they can also be used in medical environments.
This cellulose partition has already been adopted in many other places, such as the emergency area in the Navarra hospital complex in Spain. It is used to separate beds from patients for reasons of hygiene and privacy.
Smurfit Kappa's Design for Help range will also include corrugated beds for temporary hospitals, protective masks and furniture including shelves and tables. Other products will be added to the range in the coming weeks.
"We all see in the media about the various product shortages and the need for a rapid response, explains Arco Berkenbosch, Smurfit Kappa's Vice President for Innovation and Development. I am very proud of our designers who were so quick to take up the challenge to create a series of simple but effective products that are clear proof that corrugated board is the hygienic single-use material par excellence"
It should be noted that various studies have shown that this new coronavirus has a shorter lifespan on corrugated cardboard than on other materials such as steel and plastic.
