Our technology partner Honeywell is now producing the N95 masks in Rhode Island in it’s fight against COVID-19
When the first N95 masks rolled off the production line this week, there was a brief acknowledgment amongst the team at Honeywell’s Smithfield, Rhode Island facility.
“Everyone was excited and eager to help with this cause,” said Conor Ryan, plant director. “We clapped at the accomplishment, then got back to making them.”
The manufacturing plant typically makes safety glasses and face shields has been configured to also produce the in-demand masks.
The setup usually takes about nine months, but was completed in five weeks to meet the urgent need of frontline workers during the coronavirus outbreak.
The masks will be delivered to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for the Strategic National Stockpile to support health, safety and emergency response workers.
In addition to the Rhode Island site, N95 manufacturing will start at an aerospace facility in Phoenix, Arizona in mid-May. Once both sites are fully operational, they will produce more than 20 million masks per month. The two new lines will create more than 1,000 jobs in the U.S.
To support the fight against COVID-19, Honeywell is increasing production of other personal protective equipment, including safety eyewear and face shields. They also make sensors used in ventilators and are providing testing services to ventilator manufacturers.
Credits to Honeywell Newsroom