Textile rental service firms provide healthcare facilities with a wide variety of specialised textiles including: surgical textiles for the operating room, including highly sophisticated new barrier fabrics patients and staff clothing, and hospitality linen (bed sheets, towels...) More than simply renting, cleaning and repairing textiles, our members' customer-tailored service solutions also include: pick up of soiled items and delivery of hygienically clean or sterilised textiles support to hospital managers in terms of internal logistics and textile management in order to lower costs and optimize textile inventory Reusable medical textiles perform to the healthcare profession's high standards in terms of hygiene, applicability, safety (for patients and hospital staff), comfort and traceability. Why use reusable medical textiles? newly-developed materials that perform to high quality standards time after time rigorous quality control to maximise safety of patient and hospital staff outstanding comfort, drapeability and breathability cost savings (lower investment and operating costs, solutions for variable costs, no waste disposal costs) transparency of consumption and costs ecological (less waste, ecological laundering processes) optimised stock management and in-house distribution flexibility towards customer needs and costs compliance with latest European and national legislation advantages of outsourcing E.T.S.A. commissioned a Life Cycle Assessment of surgical gowns. The study assessed the impact of both reusable and disposable gowns. The assessment shows that when all factors are taken into consideration, including costly disposal of hospital waste, the reusable solution is significantly better for the environment. Copyright © 2004, E.T.S.A. European Textile Services Association. All rights reserved.