Valsem Industries: the masks are on!

Founded in 1977, ValsemIndustries designs, produces and distributes technical flexible membranes, composed of several layers, offering very high mechanical and anti‑corrosion resistance. This unique know‑how has given the company an enviable position in the pharmaceutical, aeronautical and aerospace industries: "Our products are used to package aircraft propellers, as well as BOA flexible hoses for rockets such as Ariane 4 and 5," explains Jean‑François Daviet, CEO of the company he took over in 2010. It was when he realised the economic and ecological cost of disposable surgical masks that he mobilised some of his technological resources to develop a new concept of masks, "born in Chartreuse", which are up to 30 times more economical than the usual masks.

A sustainable international market

Afnor S76‑001 certified, with a very high degree of protection (99%), these masks from the DESS range have successfully passed the 100 washings threshold without losing their qualities: "Their filtration capacity increases even more as they are washed! What's more, they can be recycled, customised and offer maximum breathability", promises Jean‑François Daviet. Since the beginning of spring, several hundred thousand masks have already left the Valsem Industries factories, to be sold first to the general public, via a dedicated online shop, and then to the corporate market and local authorities worldwide. On a humanitarian basis, the company has also spread its technology, in the form of kits, to countries in difficulty such as Burkina Faso and Mexico. Jean‑François Daviet plans to make this mask production sustainable beyond the end of the pandemic: "The market will be sustainable, particularly in Asia, where wearing a mask has become a reflex at the slightest health alert.