Amid the rising cases of COVID-19 around the world, essential medical equipment such as ventilators and personal protective equipment are currently lacking, putting medical frontliners in jeopardy and coronavirus patients suffering.
Manufacturers are trying to keep with the demand, but with hundreds of thousands of cases, it is a daunting task for them.
Various Sectors to the Rescue
To lessen their burden, multiple companies in different sectors are now redirecting their production on manufacturing the essentials: ventilators, face masks, hand sanitizers and rubbing alcohol, hospital gowns, and more.
Here are some of the automakers, fashion companies, distilleries, and breweries that are using their resources to help with the battle against coronavirus and COVID-19, courtesy of Yahoo! Finance.
Automakers
Among the list of automakers who have answered the call to create more ventilators for COVID-19 patients are Ford, General Motors, Exor, Tesla, Toyota, and Renault.
Ford is currently assisting General Electric Healthcare to produce ventilators at a Ford factory. They are also working on Powered Air-Purifying Respirators with 3M, which is based in Minnesota. They will also provide ventilators in the UK.
General Motors (GM), on the other hand, is working together with Ventec Life Systems to manufacture ventilators at a GM factory in Indiana. An employee-led initiative also had GM working on face masks, producing 50,000 masks a day with the potential to double the number.
Exor is also working on ventilators, with the hopes of producing 160 to 500 units in a month.
Tesla's CEO, Elon Musk, has already bought 1,255 ventilators from China and is donating them to various hospitals in Los Angeles and New York.
Japanese carmaker, Toyota, is working on both ventilators and respirators for COVID-19 patients. They will also start on making 3D-printed face shields to be donated to hospitals in Dallas, Kentucky, Houston, Indiana, and Michigan.
They are also looking for partners to create mask filters.
Meanwhile, Renault is also using its 3D printer to produce medical visors for healthcare frontliners in Spain. They are also hoping to expand their assistance and provide ventilator parts.
Fashion and Cosmetics Industry
Besides carmakers, different organizations and companies in the fashion industry are focusing their resources to produce PPE.
Among them is Dancing with the Stars dancer Tony Dovolani who is currently working with Advis, Inc. president and CEO, Lyndean Brick, to provide 1 million masks, known as "Million Mask MOVEment." They are doing this with the help of 14 ballroom dressmakers who are working six days a week to produce the mask.
A Canadian parka company known as Canada Goose has pledged to provide 10,000 patient gowns and scrubs and are starting their production.
Meanwhile, world-renowned powerhouses like Christian Sirano, Ralph Lauren, Gap, Hanes, New Balance, Under Armour, LVMH (owner of Louis Vuitton and Dior), and more are starting to produce face masks, N95 face masks, hospital gowns, medical gears, and hand sanitizers that will be donated to medical frontliners to protect them against the novel coronavirus and COVID-19 infection.
Distilleries and Breweries
Several distilleries and breweries around the world, including in the US, the UK, Canada, Switzerland, are beginning to produce hand sanitizers as an answer to the global shortages in pharmacies and hospitals.
A few companies like Bacardi, Anheuser-Busch, Sazerac Co., and even smaller distilleries are already producing and donating thousands of bottles of hand sanitizers to medical frontliners, the police, and care homes for safety against COVID-19.
Other Companies
Various other companies in different sectors are redirecting their resources to help ease the burden caused by the coronavirus global pandemic.
Dyson, a well-known vacuum maker, has already invented the CoVent, which is a ventilator with Dyson's digital motor and runs on battery power. The U.K. has ordered 10,000 CoVents, but Dyson is adding 5,000 more to be distributed around the world.
Leesa, a mattress company, has also provided mattresses for hospital use and are currently shipping 1,000 mattresses to various hospitals, according to The Ticker.
A Washington-based custom sole maker, Superfeet, is now using its 3D printer to produce medical supplies that will be donated to healthcare workers.
