Since the beginning of the pandemic, countries have been been racing against time to increase the production of masks to curb the spread of the coronavirus. France is one of those countries and believe it or not, its a tyre manufacturer that has come to their rescue. French tyre giant Michelin has mobilised its team's tremendous capacity for innovation and R&D to develop, produce and deliver several types of masks in large quantities for the French government within an extremely limited time frame.
Through this initiative, Michelin is playing an active part in the global battle against the COVID-19 pandemic by increasing the number of masks it donates to health-care workers and individuals in the countries where it operates.
Michelin launches the production of surgical masks in 10 European plants
Following the initialisation phase which is now underway, Michelin will produce some 400,000 category 1 surgical masks weekly, either in its own workshops or in collaboration with partners or subcontractors. Ten sites in Europe have already been selected, including La Combaude in Clermont-Ferrand (France), Olsztyn (Poland) and Zalău (Romania).
In addition, Michelin has joined other companies, led and coordinated by the Grenoble-based collective VOC-COV, in the design and large-scale rollout of a reusable mask.
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The OCOV® FMP1 or FMP2 mask, entirely developed and manufactured in France’s Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in record time, is affordable as well as sustainable. It can be produced in large quantities and reused up to 100 times thanks to five washable, interchangeable filters.
Production of a prototype batch of 5,000 units is underway. The goal is to produce one million masks per week by May, leading to total production of more than five million masks by end-June – the equivalent of 500 million single-use masks.
Sterilisable Polycarbonate Protective Visors for hospitals
At the request of several French hospitals, Michelin has also launched the production of sterilisable polycarbonate visors for health workers. As early as next week, the group will be managing the outsourced production of 10,000 visors.
Michelin is also active in many other projects involving ventilators, medical device components, patient-positioning cushions and hand sanitizers.
