Honeywell expands PPE face mask production in Europe with new manufacturing line at UK electronics plant
15 May 2020
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The UK government & Honeywell have signed an agreement for 70 million FFP2 & FFP3 PPE face masks to support the UK’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. A new production line will create approximately 450 jobs in Newhouse, Scotland.
Honeywell has announced that it will build a new production line capable of producing up to 4.5 million FFP2 and FFP3 disposable PPE (personal protective equipment) face masks per month at its Newhouse site in Scotland, United Kingdom. These masks will assist the UK government’s response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
The UK government has ordered 70 million of the locally produced Honeywell SuperOne face masks, with production expected to start as early as July. The masks will be distributed by the Department of Health & Social Care to the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) and social care settings to protect frontline workers.
The new mask production line is expected to create approximately 450 jobs at Honeywell’s Newhouse site. The Newhouse plant specialises in electronic systems assembly and testing and other advanced manufacturing capabilities for several of Honeywell’s business groups, and will continue to do so alongside the new face mask line.
“As a global leader of high quality personal protective equipment, Honeywell is committed to getting safety gear to those who need it most, including workers on the front line of the fight against COVID-19,” said Will Lange, President of Honeywell’s Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) business. “Our Newhouse facility has both the physical capacity and technical capabilities to launch a large-scale respirator production line in such a short timeframe. We are proud of our teams who are bringing new manufacturing capabilities to the United Kingdom as quickly as possible to support the country’s response to the pandemic.”
“We’re excited to share this news with customers as we further build our PPE presence in the UK and Europe,” said Sebastian Schatt, General Manager for PPE for Europe, Middle East & Africa. “The team is proud that Honeywell is playing this important role in helping protect UK front line workers, and excited about bringing this new production line to life.”
This is the third new respirator face mask production line Honeywell has announced in the last two months. The company started two new manufacturing lines in the United States for the North American market.
“These 70 million masks are the result of our challenge to UK industry to scale-up domestic PPE manufacturing,” said Health Secretary, Matt Hancock. “This deal is brilliant news for the whole United Kingdom, which will not only deliver the masks we need, but create around 450 jobs in Newhouse, Scotland. I’m delighted to team up with Honeywell to open up another avenue to get millions of masks to the frontline and strengthen our ongoing response to the outbreak.”
The UK government said it marks a significant moment in the government’s ‘make’ programme, headed up by Lord Deighton, which seeks to unleash the potential of UK industry to scale up domestic PPE manufacturing.
Honeywell will supply the 70 million face masks from Newhouse to the UK government over an 18-month timeframe.
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