Honeywell to Phase Out Critical Sterilant
Honeywell will phase out its line of Oxyfume ethylene oxide sterilant blends by the end of 2013 in response to regulations in the U.S. Clean Air Act.
The regulations “will ban the sale and use of most hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC)-based products like Oxyfume in the United States as of Dec. 31, 2014,” says the Morristown, NJ,-based company. HCFC has the potential to deplete the ozone, according to a fact sheet on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s website.
The phase out has the potential to affect healthcare facilities and manufacturers. The company estimates in a press release that more than 70% of U.S. hospitals over the past 25 years have used the product to sterilize surgical or laboratory equipment.
Hospitals and manufacturers should return all unused cylinders soon, as the company says it cannot receive any Oxyfume 2,000 or 2,002 cylinders after production ceases by the end of 2013.
“The time to act is now, and customers who find unused Oxyfume cylinders should contact Honeywell today for cylinder return information,” said Jeff Czarnecki, global business director for Honeywell’s healthcare and packaging business. “Even if customers are no longer using Oxyfume for their sterilization needs, they should verify they are no longer in possession of cylinders by checking loading docks and other storage areas.”
Turning in cylinders now can help customers avoid the high cost of disposing of them later, the company says. It can cost more than $1,000 per cylinder to dispose of unused ones deemed hazardous waste, Honeywell says.
The company has been providing regular updates to manufacturers and hospitals since 1995 on the issue, so many are aware of the issue and have had time to plan the change to another vendor, says Philip Cogdill, director of sterilization and microbiology for Covidien.
“The change to another blend does require regulatory approvals for manufacturers, and this is time consuming, so I believe most manufacturers have already changed or are well into the process of change,” says Cogdill, a member of AAMI’s Board of Directors.
Honeywell has set up a website to provide customers with information about the phase out. It offers resource to help the customer identify unused cylinders and how to return them, the company says.
Posted: August 22, 2012