By THEPHILBIZNEWS STAFF
As the demand for PPEs continues to rise and led to the scarcity of supply. Plus the issue on the reliability and worthiness of the quality of PPEs from China that spooks the global market, the Department of Trade and Industry sees an opportunity in this and through its Shared Service Facility (SSF) Fabrication Laboratories (FabLabs) took the initiative to have Filipino made PPEs that guarantees the quality of materials and craftsmanship for the Filipino health workers and frontliners.
With the Department of Trade and Industry steps up to address the growing demand for our own use, DTI Secretary Ramon hopes to increase the production and eventually export these PPEs in the process.
As of April 22, the DTI-SSF=FabLabs was able to produce 59,127 face shields and 230 aerosol boxes and has already been distributed to as much as 1,026 hospitals nationwide.
By using our own SSF FabLab projects, the Department of Trade and Industry under its private-public partnership initiative has implemented through cooperators that aims to improve micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) competitiveness by providing machinery, equipment, systems, and other auxiliary items, as well as skills and knowledge under a shared system.
“There is a growing community of makers in our regions, particularly the MSME sector, who has been helping the country in providing our healthcare workers and frontliners with locally-fabricated PPEs,” DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez said.
“With this, we can provide personal protective equipment (PPE) to hospitals, health units, and other essential establishments doing frontline work,” the Trade Chief explains.
Currently, there are 24 DTI-funded and supported SSF FabLabs along with privately-run FabLabs have collaborated with Filipino professionals, doctors, members of the academe, experts from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Fab Networks across the globe to produce medical-grade PPEs.
These SSF FabLabs have responded to the needs of the COVID-19 outbreak in the country by producing face shields, aerosol boxes, face masks, medical gowns, and ethyl alcohol. Fabrication of other medical devices such as ventilators and intubation equipment, as well as scrub suits, reusable masks, and ventilators are also being explored to address the gap.
“The beauty of these SSFs and Fablabs is that the workers are from the community and they don’t need to travel far to earn a living,” said Secretary Lopez.
The Trade Chief also underscored the need to create local manufacturing capacities in order to reduce import dependence, given the global shortage of critical medical supplies.
“With the help of various groups and individuals, we have been slowly addressing the shortage of PPEs for our healthcare workers and frontliners. There are around 10 ongoing projects that have the capacity to produce medical-grade coveralls, face masks, and ventilators, among others,” Sec. Lopez said.
With the mandatory wearing of face masks or other forms of protective equipment enforced by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) the in public places to prevent the further spread of COVID-19 in the country, this would pave way for the demand for more PPEs.
“We continue to encourage members of the private sector to join in this endeavor, especially as there is a growing demand for PPEs and face masks. This will become a necessity as we redefine health standards and new protocols for business operations post-ECQ,” the trade chief concluded.
