AN AUTOMOTIVE company has begun supplying PPE after creating a dedicated medical department.
Warwick-based Contechs has formed a division called Contechs Medical, which manufactures gowns, masks, gloves, and face shields.
It first supplied PPE in June to University Hospitals Birmingham and now supplies 10,000 gowns a week.
Managing director Peter Jarvis said: “We see this as a natural diversification for us, to use the skills we have established over the last 25 years to enter the medical sphere to complement our portfolio of services.
“We have leveraged our state-of-the-art automotive and lean manufacturing techniques to the medical market to ensure efficiency, productivity, and cost-effectiveness.
“We’re proud to be supplying Britain’s brave key workers and medical staff with high-quality protective equipment during their fight against the epidemic.”
Contechs invested around £750,000 employing a specialist team and creating 110 jobs working over two shifts.
It is now looking to work with other NHS trusts.
Hospital procurement services spokesman Simon Clarke said: “Contechs was one of the early adopters following a call from the West Midlands Combined Authority and University Hospital Birmingham Trust. It was a critical time when the Trusts were not receiving the necessary PPE to keep staff safe.
“Contechs were the first to come forward with a surgical gown design. They have also been at the forefront of the development of a new range of PPE equipment to meet our cultural ethnicity requirements.
“If Contechs hadn’t come forward our medical teams would have been in serious risk. Their swift response and efficient manufacturing processes ensured that each of the three trusts had surgical gowns available at all times.”
