COVID-19: Lamborghini is making masks and medical shields for healthcare workers

Luxury sports car maker Lamborghini announced that they would be reconverting some departments of it production plant in Sant’Agata Bolognese so produce surgical masks and protective medical shields as part of their contribution to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

These masks and medical shields will be produced in collaboration with the University of Bologna and will be delivered to the Sant’Orsola-Malpighi Hospital. To ensure that these medical devices are up to standard, the Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences will oversee validation testing prior to their delivery to the hospital.

According to Lamborghini, one thousand surgical masks will be made in the Upholstery Department of their plant. This is the department that usually produces the interiors and customisations for Lamborghini cars. On top of that, 200 polycarbonate medical shields will be produced a day inside the composites production plant at Lamborghini’s Research and Development department through the use of 3D printers.

“During an emergency such as this one, we feel the need to make a concrete contribution,” said Lamborghini CEO and chairman Stefano Domenicali.

“We have therefore decided to support the Sant’Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, an institution with which we have had a collaborative relationship for years,” he said, adding that they’ve had a collaborative relationship with that hospital for years.

“We will win the battle together by working in union, supporting those who are at the forefront of fighting this pandemic every day.”

Italy has been ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic. They’re one of the countries who were hit hardest when the virus spread through Europe.

As of the 2nd of April 2020, Italy is the country with the second most cases in the world, recording 115,242 cases, with the most deaths out of any nation hit recording a staggering 13,915 deaths. The BBC reports that the country had to extend its lockdown until the 12th of April in anticipation of the peak of its crisis which it believes will happen in just over a week’s time.

The country’s medical staff has also taken a big hit, with 61 deaths.

All hands on deck

Lamborghini joins the ranks of several other companies around the world who have pitched in to combat this virus in whatever way they can. Sharp, for example, converted their plant in Kameyama, in the Mie prefecture to produce up to 500,000 masks per day.

Companies like Dyson have lent their expertise to the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) by developing and designing new ventilators called the Covent. We also saw the Mercedes-AMG F1 team work together with teams from the University College London and University College London Hospitals to build breathing aids to help keep COVID-19 patients out of intensive care.

In the United States, carmakers like GM, Tesla and Ford have also stepped up to join the fight against the pandemic. Elon Musk on Twitter pledged that their Giga New York factory will open “as soon as humanly possible” to produce ventilators.

Ford announced that it was working with 3M and General Electric to produce “all kinds of ventilators and masks” which are in short supply around the world.

Sony Corporation, on the other hand, established a USD100 million global relief fund to help those affected by the COVID-19 virus. This fund will help those in the medical, education and even the creative community.

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