A Tiruchi based surgical kits’ manufacturing firm has begun producing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to meet the requirements of frontline health workers engaged in treating COVID-19 patients.
Metalcare Engineering, which has its manufacturing facility at Pulivalam on the outskirts of the city, had so far concentrated on producing kits for ophthalmological, orthopaedic, laparoscopic and others surgeries. The company had suspended production in the last week of March in the wake of lockdown.
However, considering the acute shortage of PPEs for doctors, nurses and paramedical staff, the company has pooled together its men and machinery and began producing customised PPEs with specifications for treating COVID-19 patients. It has so far supplied 500 PPEs to the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Government Hospital in Tiruchi, where around 30 patients COVID-19 positive patients were being treated in isolation wards.
“Producing high quality PPE kits is the need of the hour so as to protect doctors and nurses. We follow all standard protocol in producing PPE kits,” said M. Selvarajan, Managing Director of the company.
He said he had received enquiries from various parts of the country. However, Tiruchi-based hospitals would be given priority in supplying PPEs, followed by hospitals in other parts of the State.
As a token of contributing to the cause of fighting against the virus, Mr. Selvarajan said PPEs were supplied at cost price. The company had also begun the production of non clinical PPEs for fire service personnel, enumerators, municipal and sanitary workers.
