Taiwan-based Foxconn, one of the world’s largest contract manufacturer better known for making Apple iPhones, has announced that the company will be making ventilators with U.S. firm Medtronic Plc to help patients afflicted by the coronavirus outbreak.
In a statement, the company says that it is currently cooperating with Medtronic to design and develop ventilators, and added that medical and technical personnel from both firms are working closely on this.
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Medtronic Chief Executive Officer Omar Ishrak has said that Foxconn’s Wisconsin plant would be used to make the ventilators. Both the companies are trying to speed up production time so the ventilators can be put to work as soon as possible.
There has been a critical shortage of supply globally for ventilators needed in the treatment of severe cases of COVID-19. Foxconn has been making face masks, used to curb the spread of the virus, in China since February and its subsidiary Sharp has also began making them in Japan since last month.
The development of Foxconn making ventilators comes about a week after Ford Motor Co said that it will produce 50,000 ventilators over the next 100 days at its plant in Michigan in cooperation with General Electric’s healthcare unit. The company also added that it can then build 30,000 per month as needed to treat patients.
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(Via)
