COIMBATORE: With the frontline workers in the fight against COVID-19 battling the shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) as well, many new private players across the State are jumping on the bandwagon to manufacture PPEs. However, this is not backed by any lofty ideal to ensure ready availability of PPEs, but to make quick money.
Such 'opportunistic' players, however, remain unaware of the Ministry of Health's guidelines for manufacturing PPE or coverall. The quality standards while making PPE extend from preventing slippage of blood into the suit to protecting from chemical hazards.
Healthcare workers say they could contract the virus if the coveralls are substandard.
"The viral load could be quite high at wards where coronavirus patients stay. If the virus penetrates the suit, there is a chance of doctors and nurses getting affected. The quality of PPE, including face shields, must be high," they stressed.
Now, private manufacturing units must get their sample approved by the South India Textile Research Association (SITRA) in Coimbatore before putting their wares on the market.
Representatives of industry bodies claim that a few non-profit organisation donating coverall kits to government hospitals are not aware of the quality aspect, which is detrimental to the cause.
"The seam sealing machine -- an expensive equipment -- that helps seal the sides of the fabric to make it a coverall is available only with a few manufacturers," say sources, meaning that most donated PPEs might not meet the stringent guidelines.
Meanwhile, SITRA, the research body accredited to test PPE samples manufactured across India, has approved nearly 90 manufacturers of coverall as on Sunday evening. This is in contrast to the research body having approved around 25 coverall manufacturers until March-end.
Director of SITRA Prakash Vasudevan said, "There is a plethora of coverall and mask samples pending test and approval. We are inundated with samples at our Centre of Excellence for Medical Textiles in recent times."
The alternative is to get the samples tested at the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS) in New Delhi and Ordnance Factories at Avadi and Kanpur, Prakash added.
SITRA's Administrative Officer K Sajjan Rao said, "We are currently testing the samples of coverall and masks. Soon, we shall begin testing N95 facemasks samples too. We have certain parameters for approval. For masks, factors like breathability and splash resistance are considered. Whereas the coverall is tested based on bacterial filtration efficiency."
The test results are being sent to the Ministry of Health, HLL Lifecare Limited (HLL) and the manufacturers through mail.
To help procure stocks from approved manufacturers, SITRA would soon display a list of manufacturing units of fabric and coverall across India on its website.
Speaking about the business opportunity for coverall manufacturers, Chairman of Indian Technical Textile Association (ITTA) KS Sundararaman said there could be a drop in production in three-four months.