The Slatest
These Companies Are Switching Gears to Help Address Coronavirus Shortages
By Chloe Hadavas
March 23, 20206:09 PM
A leather workshop that's become a makeshift mask factory near Vigevano, Italy, on Thursday. Miguel Medina/Getty Images
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While people are starting to adjust to life amid the coronavirus shutdown, entire businesses are also retooling their operations. Democrats and many governors have called on President Donald Trump to use a wartime law to push American industries to provide badly needed equipment to help combat the pandemic. Some companies have already shifted entirely to pandemic operations—whether that means redirecting facilities to produce hand sanitizer in leftover fancy soap bottles or working to transform assembly plants into ventilator factories. These are the enterprises that are undergoing a pandemic overhaul.
LVMH, the French luxury goods conglomerate, has bid adieu to floral scents and glass bottles at its Christian Dior, Givenchy, and Guerlain perfume factories. Just 72 hours after the French government issued a call to industry to address a shortage of hand sanitizer on March 13, LVMH's perfume facilities started churning out the essential product for health care works—in Dior-branded plastic bottles, naturally. LVMH is donating the hand sanitizer to France's health authorities and hospitals and will continue production "for as long as necessary," the company said in a statement. The L'Oréal Group and Coty have since announced similar plans.
#LVMHjoinsforces and says a special THANK YOU to all those involved in the manufacturing of #HydroalcoholicGel, in particular to its exceptional production teams from @Guerlain, #DiorParfums and @ParfumsGivenchy showing great solidarity and engagement for the common good. pic.twitter.com/i5pPkh1H5s
— LVMH (@LVMH) March 19, 2020
New York state has also started manufacturing its own hand sanitizer. It's being produced—in what critics have called "slave labor"—by incarcerated people, who usually earn 65 cents per hour, at the Great Meadow Correctional Facility in Washington County. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the state will produce 100,000 gallons of the sanitizer—which he described as having hints of "lilac, hydrangea, tulips"—per week.
We're hearing from local governments that acquiring hand sanitizer has been a real problem.
NYS will immediately begin producing hand sanitizer ourselves — 100,000 gallons per week. We'll provide it to government agencies, schools, the MTA, prisons, & others. #COVID19
— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) March 9, 2020
Craft distilleries around the U.S. have also started to manufacture the crucial but scarce liquid, with a recipe from the World Health Organization that calls for the same alcohol used to produce traditional spirits. Many are giving hand sanitizer away for free to customers and health care workers. The tricky part, the New York Times reported, is finding enough plastic containers—many distilleries have started asking people to bring their own bottles.
They're not pretty but they work. We're bottling up some 65% alcohol for disinfecting. Any essential service individual or organization who needs some, reach out, we'll have 1,000+ bottles for tomorrow, on us. More hand sanitizer is here for anyone in need.
Reach out via DM pic.twitter.com/AYF0lsO24L
— Dillon's Distillery (@dillonsdistills) March 17, 2020
Face Masks and Gowns
Inditex, the parent company of fast-fashion giant Zara, has turned over its supply chains to produce medical equipment free of charge for the Spanish government, despite taking a 287 million euro hit to inventories. The company, which has already donated 10,000 surgical masks, expected to ship 300,000 more by the end of last week. Once it's sourced the right materials, Inditex also intends to produce medical gowns.
Other fashion companies have followed suit, though their masks aren't yet medical grade. Los Angeles Apparel is crafting masks from a sweatshirt-like fabric at its 150,000-square-foot factory, according to the New York Times, and plans to start sewing hospital gowns on Monday. The brand's founder hopes to produce 300,000 masks and 50,000 gowns per week. Some masks are being donated to hospitals, while others are being sold on the company's website.
Face masks. That's Los Angeles. A detailed illustration of our Cotton Face Mask, available on our website in packs of 3. We believe fit and comfort are key factors to the effectiveness of masks for everyday wear. Our reusable masks can be washed and worn over and over and are hand sewn by workers earning living wages in Los Angeles, CA using premium construction techniques. We recommend consumers do their own research before purchasing any face mask #thatslosangeles #losangelesapparel #thatslosangelesapparel #facemask #illustration #mask #madeinusa #cotton #washable
A post shared by Los Angeles Apparel (@losangelesapparel) on Mar 21, 2020 at 10:21pm PDT
Luxury fashion designers are also joining the mask production forces. Christian Siriano has asked his 10 seamstresses in New York to make masks for the city, which he'll initially provide free of charge. High-end swimwear brand Karla Colletto is reopening its factory in Virginia to produce masks and gowns after it receives medical-grade materials from 3M this week. These will be sold through a hospital supply distributor.
Thanks everyone for all the support. We are making waves and working on getting approvals before we start anything. It's very important before anyone does anything to help, please make sure what you are making is safe and hopefully FDA approved. We must be smart.
— Christian Siriano (@CSiriano) March 21, 2020
Though it's still unclear what exactly Tesla and/or SpaceX plans to do, founder Elon Musk tweeted on Wednesday that his companies would start producing ventilators "if there is a shortage," but argued on Thursday that they can't be produced instantly while he also questioned hospital shortages. (Musk has been extremely vocal about COVID-19 on Twitter.) So are ventilators in the works? Apparently, yes.
Tesla makes cars with sophisticated hvac systems. SpaceX makes spacecraft with life support systems. Ventilators are not difficult, but cannot be produced instantly. Which hospitals have these shortages you speak of right now?
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 19, 2020
Other automakers in the U.S. are considering whether they will be able to use their plants to manufacture critical medical equipment, including ventilators. Ford and General Motors have been in discussions with the White House, which has the authority to require them to produce supplies under the Defense Production Act. Trump has now encouraged Ford, General Motors, and Tesla to produce ventilators and "other metal products," but he's yet to order them to do so. General Motors said on Friday that it's collaborating with a small ventilator manufacturer to explore how it can help it increase production. The British government has also reached out to automakers, including Rolls-Royce and Jaguar, for manufacturing help.
Ford, General Motors and Tesla are being given the go ahead to make ventilators and other metal products, FAST! @fema Go for it auto execs, lets see how good you are? @RepMarkMeadows @GOPLeader @senatemajldr
On a smaller scale, Bloom Energy, a San Jose–based company that manufactures fuel cells, has started refurbishing California's supply of older ventilators. And the Italian army has made 25 technicians available to a Bologna-based ventilator maker.
Thank you for your leadership, @CAgovernor @GavinNewsom. Honored to do our part to help during these unprecedented times. By optimizing our manufacturing facilities, we're working to produce essential medical equipment to respond to the COVID-19 crisis. Watch 35:42 to learn more. https://t.co/Tmexd8DGbd
— Bloom Energy (@Bloom_Energy) March 22, 2020