An initial batch will reach front line medical staff in the next few days and the company says it can produce 100,000 masks a week, supplying them directly across the Midlands and the wider UK.
Gavin Ashe, managing partner of Kite, said: “Like many companies, we wanted to help and realised that we had the capabilities in-house to design a face visor that would fit the requirements of the medics and workers who are on the front line of the fight against Coronavirus.
“Once our engineers had finalised the concept and we spoke to a range of companies in the industry, they have all responded magnificently.
“All of them realised the urgency of the requirement for protective ware and that we had the skills to turn around a product quickly.
“One of the suppliers is Staeger in Coventry, while two of the others are based in the wider region. I know there is really good work going on across this area and that the tradition of design and engineering, which is so embedded in regional industry, is well suited to undertaking this sort of work.”
The visors are being supplied in kit form for the medical staff to put them together at the point of use, which minimises packaging and speeds up distribution.
The visors feature a foam forehead pad which allows them to fit all head sizes, and they allow for a medical mask to be worn underneath.
They have so far been ordered by the George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust, University Hospitals Coventry & Warwickshire NHS Trust, Shropshire Healthcare Procurement Service (SHPS), Alliance Boots, Warwick Hospital (South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust), Guys and St. Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, North East London NHS Foundation Trust, and Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust.
