MARLBOROUGH - Omega Systèmes, the French subsidiary of US-based Web Industries company, is shipping 900,000 personal facemasks approved by the French General Directorate of Armament to the Ministère des Armées for distribution to food manufacturers, supermarkets and nursing homes conducting business in France.
Obtaining the French General Directorate of Armament approval for mask production called for Omega to pass a series of tests carried out in accordance with stringent Armament specifications, including those for wearer protection.
The announcement comes at a time when demand for the facemasks is high throughout France. Prime Minister Édouard Philippe has extended Covid-19 containment measures until April 15, as the number of infections in France exceeds 81,000 with more than 10,800 deaths in hospitals.
The masks are being supplied by the Ministèred Armées to businesses whose personnel are at a high risk of contamination, such as those working in the food sector and facilities housing the elderly. These single-use masks can be worn for up to four hours before being changed and offer a 96% protection rate.
To meet this demand, Omega is operating around the clock, running three eight-hour shifts to produce more than 150,000 masks per day. The company plans to fulfill orders for more than four million masks per month.
According to Web Industries vice president of Corporate Development Kevin Young, Omega converted parts of its Nantes France operation from aerospace component manufacturing to the production of facemasks to assist France’s overall fight against the coronavirus.
“We are allocating assets and running multiple shifts at our plant to support the government and the people of France during this time of pandemic,” he said. “We’ll continue facemask production for as long as needed, and we’ll be looking for additional opportunities to help.”
Omega Systèmes said it is making every effort to address the urgency of Covid-19 by developing prototypes of individual protective masks and then putting the designs into mass production in an extremely short time frame.
At the same time, the company has put in place reinforced measures to ensure the safety of personnel. Omega Systèmes is equipped to produce and supply the essential elements in the fight against Coronavirus for as long as demand exists.
