Mohawk Blog

Mohawk Paper Utilizes Xanita Board to Offer Ready-to-Use Field Hospital Rooms

Photography
Mohawk
A demonstration of Xanita hospital products

From Cohoes to Cape Town — aiding the combat against COVID-19 with corrugated cardboard.

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At Mohawk, we like to think that what we make helps others make a difference, which is why we are reaching out to the medical community with an innovative solution for the projected shortage of hospital beds in New York State and throughout the country. 

Our 800+ employees have been designated as essential in New York, Ohio, and Massachusetts, and while the vast majority of our staff has shifted to remote work these last few weeks, our dedicated craftspeople continue to safely produce fine paper at our mills. But when we started brainstorming about ways to help the local community during the COVID-19 crisis, we set our sights on a niche product usually sold as a way to construct lightweight, sturdy exhibits at trade shows and adapted it to support the need for hospital rooms.

Digital illustration showing the features of Xanita Board
Detail of folded Xanita Board
Xanita Board is a lightweight, UV inkjet printable board that is strong with a high crush strength core, non-toxic (no VOCs), direct printable, flat pack, and is 100% repulpable/recyclable.
Xanita Board
Detail of the edges of cut Xanita Board
Xanita is not cardboard or timber, but is made from post-consumer recycled cellulose fibers such as Kraft cardboard boxes.
Xanita Board

The product, called Xanita Board, is manufactured by a startup in Capetown, South Africa and distributed by Mohawk in North America. It looks similar to corrugated cardboard, but its special construction makes it strong enough to bear weight. It can be cut to fit together like a jigsaw puzzle, so no tools are required to build three-dimensional, weight-bearing structures. The material is also remarkably lightweight and easy to ship.

Reacting to news reports that hospitals in New York and nationwide could run out of space in the near future, Mohawk’s executive team reached out to engineers in South Africa to ask them if they thought Xanita Board could be used to easily construct hospital rooms. The team in Cape Town moved quickly. Less than 24 hours later, they sent a complete set of digital "cut files," which detail how to construct room dividers and patient beds for use in pop-up hospitals to help with patient overflow.

Image of a demonstration setup of a Xanita hospital bench and walls
Xanita can be cut to fit together like a jigsaw puzzle, so no tools are required to build three-dimensional, weight-bearing structures.
Xanita Board

"We had hoped Xanita could assist with capacity needs during this crisis; we just didn’t know how or what that would ultimately look like," said Rowan Maher, CMO at Xanita in Cape Town. "When Mohawk reached out for assistance, we jumped at the opportunity to help."

Xanita Board is sold in flat sheets that must then be specially cut. But since time is of the essence, we have partnered with DataFlow, a custom printing and signage company in Binghamton, NY to do the cutting of this complete field hospital room solution in advance. All the Xanita Board currently on hand at Mohawk is ready to be converted at a moment’s notice into walls, beds, and other useful structures. It will then be shipped with easy-to-understand instructions so it can be built on-site in minutes, requiring no tools and simple nuts and bolts shipped with each kit. Because the boards are made from recycled cardboard, once the need for the temporary structures is complete, the units can be stored for re-use or turned back into pulp for paper.

“We hope no one needs these field hospital beds, but if they do, we would be proud to be able to help.”
Tom O'Connor III
Vice President of Channel Management, Mohawk

"We want to remove any barriers, any friction that might slow down our ability to help the health care community," DataFlow’s Dan Zimmerman said. "Partnering with Mohawk to provide pre-made kits seemed like the fastest way to get the job done." 

There is currently Xanita Board inventory on hand at Mohawk, with back up supply ready to ship to meet demand. The digital plans that explain how to cut and assemble the structures are available now and designed to be used with Xanita Board. Mohawk’s Vice President of Product Development, Mike Madura, said he hopes they’ll inspire more innovation.

"Now is not the time to hold back knowledge that could help protect our communities from this crisis," Madura said. "For our merchants who have Xanita in stock, they’ll be able to easily offer these field hospital kits to their communities. And for any creative minds who want to help, we hope it will provide a foundation on which they can build their ideas."

Candid shot showing the setup of Xanita hospital equipment
All the Xanita Board currently on hand at Mohawk is ready to be converted at a moment’s notice into walls, beds, and other useful structures.
Xanita Board
Mohawk employee demonstrating how Xanita is assembled
Because the boards are made from recycled cardboard, once the need for the temporary structures is complete, the units can be stored for re-use or turned back into pulp for paper.
Xanita Board

We are also offering warehouse space and logistical assistance to help expedite the transport of medical supplies, and expects to reconfigure some of its converting facilities to speed PPE production for medical workers.

"We are ecstatic that this creative collaboration with Xanita and DataFlow has given us an opportunity to make a positive difference during a difficult time," said Tom O’Connor III, Mohawk’s Vice President of Channel Management. "We hope no one needs these field hospital beds, but if they do, we would be proud to be able to help."

Mohawk’s customer service is typically only available on weekdays (Mon - Fri, 8 AM - 6:30 PM EST), but in these unprecedented times, inquiries can be directed anytime to Tommy.OConnor@mohawkpaper.com.

Requests for the field hospital cut files, as well as any non-time sensitive questions, should be emailed to mike.madura@mohawkpaper.com.

Media contact chris.harrold@mohawkpaper.com.

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