Bayer MaterialScience LLC Develops Raw Materials for Wound Dressings

Pittsburgh, PA, February 21, 2011 --(PR.com)-- Bayer MaterialScience LLC announces the availability of Baymedix™ FR, a new range of raw materials for functional medical wound dressings. The distinctive properties of polyurethane foams made from Baymedix™ FR can facilitate the design of innovative wound care products.

Wound dressings based on Baymedix™ FR have demonstrated mechanical strength, flexibility, and biocompatibility. Their hydrophilic nature helps give them an excellent moisture management profile. They quickly absorb fluids like wound secretions, and unlike some products, do so with little or no foam expansion.

Foams made from Baymedix™ FR raw materials have pleasant aesthetics, with a durable, bright-white color and a smooth, micro-porous surface. Besides giving the foams an admirable “feel,” the finely textured surface of the foams aids their fluid handling.

A notable characteristic of the foams is their thermoformability. This enables wound dressings that are formed to complex shapes in manufacturing, and keep their shape for the duration of the treatment.

The foams’ thermoplastic nature also allows them to be joined to other layers by different methods and in some cases without adhesives, giving wound care product engineers more flexibility in product design. Specifically, foams made from Baymedix™ FR can be combined with Dureflex® thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) films from Bayer MaterialScience, which are seen as skin-friendly and protect wounds from dirt and microbes. Dureflex® TPU films include water vapor-permeable products that allow wounds to breathe.

These products expand Bayer MaterialScience’s Baymedix™ range of materials for the medical technology industry. The program also includes the Baymedix™ CL 100 lubricious coating technology and the Baymedix™ CD platform of drug-releasing coatings. Bayer operates a dedicated Baymedix™ research and development center in Sheffield, England to provide customer support.

Foams made from Baymedix™ FR raw materials can be supplied in roll form. Samples are available and have been provided to selected customers.

Bayer MaterialScience LLC is one of the leading producers of polymers and high-performance plastics in North America and is part of the global Bayer MaterialScience business with approximately 14,300 employees at 30 production sites around the world and 2009 sales of 7.5 billion euros. The company manufactures high-tech polymer materials and develops innovative solutions for products used in many areas of daily life. The main segments served are the automotive, electrical and electronics, construction, medical, and sports and leisure industries. Sustainability is central to Bayer MaterialScience LLC’s business and is based around the key areas of innovation, product stewardship, excellence in corporate management, social responsibility and respect for the environment.

###