Colorful bottles of embalming fluids in a rainbow array are among the tools of the trade on display at every funeral director expo. In this video, Jeff Chancellor, Director of Education, Training & Research with Eckels and Company, explains some of the different conditions various embalming fluids are designed to address.
Jeff Chancellor has provided embalming and restorative art training to more than 1,000 funeral homes, supply companies and funeral service associations in 14 countries. Eckels is, as Chancellor describes it, “A manufacturer of preservatives and cosmetic products for caring for deceased persons. We have multiple kinds of products. We have arterial chemicals, we have cavity chemicals, we have pre-injection chemicals, we have disinfecting chemicals.”
He explains the difference between a low-power preservation embalming fluid and a high-power one (from percentages of 17.5% formaldehyde to 34% formaldehyde). He also notes how the colors of the fluids provide control over achieving skin tones and complexion colors so that people look their very best.
“People are what they eat, and people are what kind of drugs and medical therapies that they receive,” he says. “There are many different causes of death, and many different complexions and many different ethnicities.”
Cavity chemicals are designed to preserve the contents of the body cavities and address medical conditions affecting the body at or after death. They also have tissue builder products to help enhance the appearance of those who have wasted away with cancer.
“We need the circulatory system to be able to deliver chemicals throughout the entire body,” he explains. With so many Americans dying of heart attacks and cardiac conditions, Eckels has a number of products to enhance circulation.
He also talks about how advances in medical care make continuing education in death care a must. “With advances in health care, of course, there’s got to be advances in death care. For example, the drugs that have changed in cancer treatment have changed the chemistry of the body, so we’re constantly updating our products so that they’re going to be relevant and they’re going to work.”
At the 2015 NFDA expo, Eckels also had unique cremation urns on display – yes, those sculptures of the lighthouse and cowboy boots, hat and rope are composite materials designed to hold cremated remains. They are featured in the company’s Impressions Catalog.
They also introduced an air-cleaning system for preparation rooms (it helps avoid inhaling formaldehyde vapors).
Learn more at www.EckelsandCompany.com.