Currently, the consumption of disposable protection is widespread due to the limited availability of comfortable and high-absorbing reusable protections. However, from an environmental perspective, it is crucial to transition from disposable to circular solutions, which is also a demand from healthcare operations.

The project aims to design a new reusable urinary incontinence pad that can manage liquids effectively through defining liquid management in textile 3D multilayers. The project builds on the success of a previous research project at the University of Borås, which resulted in the development of a high-quality reusable menstrual protection. The main challenge in achieving optimal liquid handling in composites with several textile layers is to combine fibers, yarns, and textile structures to optimize parameters such as permeability, absorption, and retention/rewetting of liquid in and between the layers in a multilayer composite.

The project is a collaboration between Swereco AB, Facilette AB, and The Swedish School of Textiles (THS) in Borås. Swereco specializes in supplying consumables for healthcare for example disposable and reusable incontinence products, while Facilette is a manufacturer of warp knitted fabrics and quilted products for healthcare products, among others. THS has been working on the menstrual protection project since 2015.