Design Process and Economic Evaluation of an Innovative Healing Plaster in Gel made from Eucalyptus Globulus Essential Oil

Abstract

The main goal of this work was to design a new product containing an active ingredient of the Eucalyptus Globulus tree - its essential oil. This work was divided into four steps: analysis of the raw material, chemical product design (needs, ideas, and product selection), manufacture, and economic analysis. After investigating the potential of all the ideas, the product selected was a plaster in gel, named Eucatrigel, with triple action: it protects the wound, accelerates the healing (due to the essential oil addition), and waterproofs the region. In the manufacturing step, it was defined the mass percentage of the essential oil in the gel as 0.5 %. The formula of the gel was based on a patent (US8563604B2) owned by Bausch Health Companies. A business case was set for the economic evaluation of this product; in this case, considering an initial investment of 681 k€, the expected payback period is four years, and the internal rate of return is 35 %.

Keywords

• eucalyptus globulus
• essential oil
• gel
• healing acceleration
• economic evaluation