Dai Havard

Labour Party | Merthyr Tydfil & Rhymney

MP Visits Convatec

Dai Havard MP was recently invited to visit the Convatec factory on the Heads of the Valley Industrial Estate in Rhymney.  Convatec is the medical devices division of Bristol-Myers Squibb — the global pharmaceutical and related health care products company that was started in 1887 and now has more than 44,000 employees serving 100 global markets. 

Convatec moved to the Rhymney site in 2000 and has seen a 400% increase in staff and the Rhymney factory is one of only 2 sites the company has in the UK.  Convatec is hoping to expand the factory and is planning to spend £20million that will double its capacity, but they don’t plan to stop there and hope to continue to invest in the Rhymney work force. 

Commenting on the Visit Dai Havard MP said “Visiting the Convatec plant in Rhymney, where they make state of the art wound dressing material, gave me further insight into this important aspect of health care. The importance of wound care is often not given the recognition it deserves. Wound care is very important for many people in our communities, particularly diabetics and often central to the quality of life for many older people.

As part of my campaign work in Parliament, I have just published the findings of a major survey on wound care in the medical journal ‘Wounds UK’. This survey will support the campaign of the Tissue Viability Nurses Association (TVNA) to get more modern wound care. The dressings Convatec make are important to that national work and improved quality of care. The production work at Rhymney will allow millions of people to have better health care and that must give great job satisfaction to all those involved.

The Convatec plant in Rhymney now employs over a hundred people and the range of jobs, skills and science employed at the plant shows that our valleys have the potential to make a significant contribution. The plans for expansion at the plant show the confidence of a global employer in our area and our people. “