Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. (Philadelphia, Pa.; www.axaltacs.com) announced that its plants in Front Royal, Virginia; Mount Clemens, Michigan; Tlalnepantla, Mexico; Guarulhos, Brazil; and Wuppertal, Germany are shifting their manufacturing to produce thousands of gallons of hand sanitizer that meets the high standards of the World Health Organization. This vital product will be donated to local hospitals and first responders, as well as used at Axalta plants to ensure the safety of employees and their families. Other manufacturers who have converted production plants to make hand sanitizer include Dow, BASF, Perstorp, Huntsman, Henkel and many more.
Axalta is also donating personal protective equipment (PPE), such as facemasks (including its N-95 inventory), coveralls, closed hoods, and protective sleeves, to hospitals throughout the world. Medical professionals can use the PPE normally worn in Axalta’s manufacturing facilities and by customers to reduce the risk of contracting or transmitting coronavirus. These donations have thus far occurred in the United States, France, Belgium, and Germany.
Furthermore, the company is donating more than 5,000 seat covers, typically used in body shops, to local hospitals that are low on protective supplies. Medical professionals use the seat covers in their own cars to reduce the risk of transmitting coronavirus when they are visiting those affected by COVID-19.
Axalta has now been on the front lines of coronavirus efforts for several months. In February, to rapidly fulfill a critical need order at the request of a major customer, Axalta’s Changchun, China plant was granted a special permit to resume work (after all employee safety requirements were met) to manufacture paint for a fleet of ambulances that were in high demand at the peak of the outbreak in China.
“Axalta is committed to worldwide efforts to support the safety, health, and well-being of hospital professionals, first responders, and our employees,” said Robert Bryant, Axalta’s Chief Executive Officer. “Our entire global Axalta family is pulling together to use our collective energy and resources to help fight coronavirus in the communities where we live, work, and raise our families.”
“We are putting our manufacturing might and supply inventories to work in order to offer products that will make a difference where they are needed most – whether that be in hospital rooms, on ambulances, or on the manufacturing floor,” continued Bryant. “We will continue to look for opportunities to leverage our capabilities to the fullest and remain steadfast in our goal of serving our communities and the true heroes on the front lines of this fight.”