Sleepyhead Awarded for ‘Green’ Foam Technology
Iconic New Zealand bed manufacturer Sleepyhead has recently won a Green Ribbon Award for improving New Zealand’s air
quality through its multi-million investment in leading edge technology to produce environmentally friendly foam.
At Sleepyhead’s Evocell Foam Plant in Otahuhu, Auckland – the first of its kind in Australasia – the company
manufactures an environmentally friendlier foam product, marketed as DreamFoam®, by replacing methylene chloride with
liquid carbon dioxide.
By taking a proactive stance on the use of methylene chloride and investing to introduce a new, more environmentally
friendly manufacturing process, Sleepyhead has created a safer and healthier working environment for its employees and
is able to offer a healthier and superior product to consumers.
Through the use of high pressure CO technology, Sleepyhead is able to eliminate methylene chloride, a suspected human
carcinogen, from the foam making process. By using liquid carbon dioxide no additional gas is added to the atmosphere,
which makes it an environmentally friendlier process with greenhouse gas benefits.
In addition to its environmental benefits, the high pressure CO manufacturing process produces foam with a more
consistent cell structure resulting in a superior end product that enhances comfort and support. DreamFoam® is now
included in all beds manufactured by Sleepyhead.
“We aim to give environmentally conscious consumers the opportunity to purchase a bedding product that is better for
them and the environment, while still offering the superior comfort and support that Sleepyhead has built its reputation
on,” says Director Craig Turner.
“As a manufacturer committed to remaining in New Zealand, we’ve chosen to invest in this new foam technology to provide
a better working environment for our staff and to advance New Zealand’s reputation as a clean, innovative manufacturing
nation,” says Mr Turner.
All Sleepyhead beds sold in New Zealand are proudly 100% New Zealand made. The company employs over 1000 people and has
full control over the quality of its manufacturing processes and materials.
The company is widely regarded as the world’s most innovative bedding manufacturer, and has been at the forefront of bed
manufacturing and innovation since the Turner family established the company in Auckland in 1935.
The company is now owned and managed by directors Graeme and Craig Turner, and in October 2010 will be celebrating a
rare milestone in New Zealand manufacturing, the company’s 75th anniversary.
ENDS