Puritan Medical Products, a Guilford, Maine-based global manufacturer of single-use products will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2019.

Puritan’s management team attributes “innovation, evolution, and authenticity” to the longevity of the organization, which originated from humble beginnings in 1919 as The Minto Toothpick & Specialty Company. At the time, the company manufactured a single product: mint-flavored toothpicks. Not long thereafter, the founders recognized an opportunity to expand into other markets, which prompted a name change to Hardwood Products and the creation of the Puritan brand.

Puritan Medical Products Co. LLC has since evolved into a global manufacturer of single-use products for many industries.  Practitioners, technicians and laboratorians in healthcare, diagnostics, forensics & genetics, and environmental sampling rely on these products for their important work.  Puritan still offers the familiar cotton tipped applicators, tongue depressors, and similar items for patient care and controlled environments.  Additions to the line were first synthetic spun fiber and then foam applicators, followed by polyester flock swabs.  Dry transport devices as well as swabs with transport media - for the collection and transport of microbiological and molecular specimens – are the most recent developments.   In all, these products are chosen for work in every lab, in the investigation of ancestry, in the surveillance of the food we eat, and in the study of the universe.

Puritan has evolved from manufacturing a single product to serving more than a dozen market sectors, with a strong focus on the diagnostics industry, with a varied product line that includes basic spun fiber- and foam-tipped applicators, dry and media transport devices, and its patented HydraFlock® polyester flock swabs.

“The world of diagnostics is perpetually evolving,” stated Timothy Templet, executive vice president of sales. “As medical diagnostics advance, Puritan responds by continuing to provide products that meet current needs. Our R&D staff is constantly evaluating market changes and developing innovative new products that are both user friendly and well aligned with the current diagnostic methods.”

Puritan is planning a series of employee and community events throughout the year as well as customer appreciation and other outreach efforts to celebrate the people who have been the foundation of Puritan’s ability to achieve the 100-year milestone. 

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