The COVID-19 pandemic may have shut many companies’ operations. But some are turning this adversity into an opportunity by putting their facilities and competencies and how. Workers in several manufacturing units in Sri City near here are slogging it out to produce quality healthcare products such as Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) kits, life-saving drugs, emergency hospital beds and medical oxygen cylinders.
Pals Plush India, a soft toys and accessories maker has started producing PPE kits for the medical fraternity and other frontline warriors. The company produces the kits using seamless metal detection machines with the Acceptable Quality Limit (AQL) using in-house testing facility that makes the product safe for end-users. The entire production line has been dedicated to manufacturing these PPE kits, which includes coveralls and face shields.
Imperative diversification
Similarly, VRV Asia Pacific, one of the only two companies in India to design and manufacture cryogenic equipment, swung into action to make liquid cylinders and storage tanks for liquid oxygen. The diversification became imperative in view of the rise in demand for medical oxygen, after the spike in the number of positive cases.
Meanwhile, Vital Paper’s packaging division conceptualised and developed unique Kraft paper-based corrugated board beds, which can be used as emergency beds in hospitals. The flexible, recyclable, movable and easy-to-assemble bed, measuring 2 feet wide, and 7 feet long and weighing 16 kg, can take a load of up to 200 kg, thus addressing the shortage of beds in isolation wards.
TIL Healthcare, an arm of the Jhaver Group, produces several medicines and life saving drugs at its pharmaceutical formulation facility in Sri City. The company, which is now licensed to produce Hydroxy Chloroquine Sulfate (HCQS) tablets, is all set to start production upon receiving the raw material.
Overcoming hassles
On overcoming lockdown-related hassles to reach raw material to the units, R. Muthu Raj, Development Commissioner of Sri City SEZ announced to coordinate with the State officials to facilitate smooth running of the units, which are permitted to work with skeletal staff. He also had a meeting recently with police departments of Chittoor, Nellore (Andhra Pradesh) and Tiruvallur (Tamil Nadu), which share a border with Sri City. Sri City Managing Director Ravindra Sannareddy thanked the units for volunteering to join the cause of ridding the country of the pandemic.
