Under the joint venture agreement, SCM will supply Cupron Advanced Materials with cuprous oxide made from recycled copper. Cupron Advanced Materials will use the powder as a component in a wide range of antimicrobial products. Major markets served by this joint venture include the healthcare, medical, military and clothing industries. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
“Our joint venture with Cupron furthers our longstanding commitment to grow our company through innovation and new product development,” said Barton White, SCM’s president. “We will be offering the public access to products that will improve their quality of life by protecting them from exposure to odour and stain-causing bacteria, fungi, mould, and microbes.”
“We view this joint venture as a key to our strategic growth plan which builds on Cupron’s tradition of serving the public while protecting the environment,” said Cupron CEO Jeffrey Gabbay.
“Copper’s antimicrobial properties have been known for more than five millennia. The ancient Egyptians used copper pipes to transport water to destroy parasites and other water-borne pathogens. Shipbuilders have used copper for thousands of years to keep algae from encrusting on the hulls of ships. French vintners have used a copper sulfate compound to fight fungus on grapevines for centuries, and this application makes it possible to use these powerful and wide-ranging antimicrobial properties in new ways.”
The Cupron technology is based on the development of techniques to impregnate and to bond a copper oxide compound and other metallic compounds to a range of textile fibers. Cupron’s manufacturing technology permanently binds its proprietary copper compound to textile fibers, non-woven fabrics, paper, latex and other polymeric products. While highly sophisticated, implementation of this technology does not involve complicated or hazardous manufacturing methods. And best of all, testing indicates that the protection offered by Cupron-based products will last as long as the products themselves, regardless of multiple hot water washings, abrasion, or bleach, as long as fabric softener is not used.