Beijing, Feb 13 (AFP/APP): A diaper manufacturer in eastern China was closed for the Lunar New Year holiday when it heard from officials — China needed vast amounts of masks to fight a deadly virus epidemic and factories needed to chip in.
In just over two days, New Yifa Group converted a manufacturing line in Fujian province to make face masks, tapping some of its materials that would have gone into hygiene products.
“All our staff are working on the masks now,” the group’s vice president Shen Shengyuan told AFP in a phone interview.
He added that the line can produce up to 600,000 mask pieces a day, and the company is looking to convert another nappy production line soon.
Companies across China — from iPhone maker Foxconn to car manufacturer BYD and garment factories — have made similar forays into protective gear as the country grapples with a shortage of medical equipment to prevent the virus from spreading.
To date, the virus has killed more than 1,350 people and infected some 60,000, sparking fear across the globe and causing people to stock up on protective supplies.
Authorities said this month that China urgently needed masks, especially at the epicentre of the crisis, Hubei, where doctors face a shortage.
At full capacity, Chinese factories can only produce around 20 million masks a day.
While over 76 percent of mask producers and 77 percent of protective suit makers had resumed work as of February 10 in 22 regions, there remains a serious shortage of masks and other protective supplies, officials said this week.
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