SAMUT PRAKAN, April 11 (TNA) – The new 100-million-baht surgical mask plant that Charoen Pokphand Group (CP) built is testing its machines and will start its production in response to the local shortages of surgical masks amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
The plant stands in Phra Pradaeng district of Samut Prakan province. Its first lot of surgical masks will go to King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital that will then distribute the products free of charge to the medical personnel who are treating COVID-19 patients.
Its machines imported from China will produce three-layer surgical masks. The plant is designed to produce 100,000 masks a day or 3 million a month.
The chief engineer of the plant said the production would be automatic and artificial intelligence would be applied to reduce human touches on the products.
The plant would be tested and checked for its hygiene standard governed by the Food and Drug Administration. CP planned to start the production on April 17. The production of free surgical masks would continue until situations related to the COVID-19 pandemic improve.
CP senior chairman Dhanin Chearavanont donated 100 million baht for the completion of the plant in five weeks. In the future the plant will be handed over to King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital for the commercial production of surgical masks. The proceeds will fund the operations of its cardiac center. (TNA)
