Leading U.S. memory foam mattress manufacturer Anatomic Global said today it has joined with five of its key suppliers and Parakletos International to donate specially designed “transitional” sleep surface products to displaced Haitians. Parakletos, a national cooperative effort of the Calvary Chapel Churches, has already delivered the first of these “WorldBed” products to a clinic in Jacmel, Southern Haiti, an area still cut off from Port-au-Prince and without aid from any outside resource. At the same time, another 500 “WorldBeds” are being shipped this week.
Several thousand of these transitional mattress products will continue to be shipped until the company reaches its goal of supplying 200,000 pieces, which is what Anatomic Global expects the Haitian need to be in the coming months.
The specially designed, cot-sized mattresses are made of visco-memory foam and conventional foam. To provide moisture resistance during the upcoming rainy season, the beds are encased in a rugged nylon and vinyl cover. Each WorldBed also has a carry strap so it can be rolled and secured and actually carried over one’s shoulder, a feature that anticipates the camp and migration issues that lay ahead for the Haitians.
Joining Anatomic Global in this initiative are its key suppliers, FXI Foamex Innovations, UPS, Deslee Textiles USA, Royal Packaging and the Brookwood Companies. For the group, this is the second such time they have manufactured the WorldBed, the first being in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina when they made 3,000 units that ended up benefitting more than 11,000 temporary residents of the Cajun Dome in Lafayette, Louisiana.
In addition to this announcement, Anatomic Global said it was re-investing its corporate profits from all operations for the first quarter of 2010 to manufacture WorldBeds for Haitian relief.
“There has never been concentrated destruction and human tragedy of the scale seen in Haiti. We learned from our Katrina relief effort that in the early stages of a disaster, there are very specific sleep surface needs that align with FEMA’s sustainable disaster relief phases, that displaced persons require and we wanted to use that expertise to help – and do it quickly,” said Anatomic Global CEO David Farley. “This effort is part of Anatomic Global’s corporate genetic code and we are grateful to our business partners who share this responsibility with us.”
Farley said that many of Anatomic Global’s distributors and retailers were also in the process of joining the program along with other suppliers. He has also welcomed other mattress manufacturers to work with Anatomic Global on this initiative. Each product includes care and use instructions and an announcement in English, French and Creole, stating it is a gift from members of the U.S. bedding industry.
“We welcome everyone to join with us in this critical project. We have developed the specifications, manufacturing and logistical program and welcome the participation of others in this effort,” he added.
Founded in 1989, Anatomic Global, Inc. sets itself apart by raising the bar on the manufacture and supply of “proudly made in the USA” environmentally-friendly mattresses and bedding. The company upholds a 360-degree green manufacturing commitment in three ways – by developing applications for its innovative and sustainable plant-based formulas; by leading the industry with its zero-air emissions manufacturing process; and by applying the most efficient direct-to-store and consumer-direct delivery methods for a reduced carbon footprint.
In 2008, the company launched the Ecomfort Mattress brand of mattresses featuring its signature, patented EcoMemoryFoam™ extreme open-cell plant-based memory foam.