Back in May 2020, when the world was reeling from supply chain breakdowns, Dr. Tom Dawson was doing what many founders do best: connecting the dots.

With years of experience in emergency medicine and surgery, Tom saw firsthand just how fragile and wasteful the single-use medical textile system really was.

“The system was broken. No supply chain resilience, massive emissions, and tonnes of waste. We didn’t want to patch it. We wanted to rebuild it.”

That realization sparked the idea for Revolution-ZERO: a startup built around reusable, circular, and digitally tracked medical products that serve both hospitals and the planet.

The Three Pillars of Revolution-ZERO

Rather than improving a single product, Tom and his team designed an entire system built on three foundational pillars:

  • Product – Co-designed surgical gowns, masks, and packaging, all RFID-tagged for real-time tracking and compliance.
  • Processing Infrastructure – The world’s first all-electric renewable energy tariff cleanroom sterile textile barrier processing pod utilising low environmental impact chemicals and processes
  • Software – A comprehensive compliance and asset-tracking platform, giving hospitals live dashboards of carbon, water, and waste savings.

“We talk about the circular economy of information. It’s not just about materials, it’s about culture, capability, and quality.”

Growing by Listening

Here’s the kicker: Revolution-ZERO hasn’t needed to cold call a single hospital. In fact, two-thirds of UK hospitals and trusts have approached them directly.

“When people see the difference, less waste, real savings, better comfort, they’re in. We didn’t push. We just showed what’s possible.”

Their growth has been fueled by:

  • Inbound momentum from early NHS trials and strong social proof
  • Ultra-lean operations (Tom was the only employee in the early days)
  • Early profitability — a rare 20% profit margin in year two
  • £4.8M in funding, including £1.9M from NHS contracts
  • A product-market fit that balances cost, comfort, and sustainability

One surprise success? The veterinary sector.

“We didn’t think it would be picked up there, but it’s taking off fast.”

Big Wins and Bigger Horizons

Some of the milestones Tom and his team are proudest of include:

  • CE certification of their reusable surgical mask (just months after founding)
  • First-ever large-scale deployment of certified reusable masks in the NHS
  • Launch of their fully electric cleanroom pod, now serving multiple surgical teams
  • Expansion of new textile materials that are 40% lighter than the current industry best, whilst exceeding the standard requirements

They’re now working with 29 healthcare organizations, and growing even faster in the veterinary world.

Internationally, they’ve secured contracts in Denmark and are scaling up to distribute products across Europe, North America, China, and South America during 2025/26.

“We’ve just developed a new material that’s going to blow everything away.”

Lessons From a Second-Time Founder

Tom is no stranger to startups; he previously exited a tech company after 10 years. But this time, he’s building differently, and with heart.

“Make decisions based on love of success, not fear of failure. And go where you’re loved. If someone gets your mission, they’ll help you build it.”

His playbook includes:

  • Starting lean and proving profitability early
  • Raising capital only when it accelerates impact
  • Building partnerships that share both value and values
  • Rethinking customer relationships through novel business models like margin-sharing, where “we’re in this together” and both sides benefit from long-term success

What’s Next for Revolution-ZERO?

With new materials rolling out, infrastructure scaling, and software adoption spreading across sectors, Revolution-ZERO is shaping up to be a category-defining force in circular healthcare.

They’ve engineered a system that hospitals trust, staff prefer, and the planet desperately needs.

When the system failed, they didn’t wait around.

They became the system.