Newport News, Virginia-As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, our men and women on the front line have an increasing demand for personal protective equipment.
This is why it is the main focus of the Newport News manufacturing plant, producing the only N95 respirator in the Commonwealth.
When you enter the bright white sparkling clean manufacturing site, the harsh grinding sound is a bit deafening. Although it is not music to anyone, every stitch is a safe sound.
Jaclyn Lautz, chief operating officer of IvWatch and Blox, said: "We conduct 100% online quality checks, and 40 checks on each respirator offline."
What is produced is not just masks, but N95 respirators. "In terms of product testing requirements, the surgical N95 respirator has the highest quality," she said.
This is the safest place. Just last week, the product of the company called Blox was approved by the National Institute of Occupational Safety. They received a NIOSH rating.
This is a very rare honor, which means that when you put on a respirator, you are as safe as pollutants and body fluids in the air.
"Only a few are approved in the United States, and only half of them are domestic manufacturers," Lautz said.
As the pandemic intensified, the company switched to N95 production last year. "With the peak of the COVID pandemic, we studied how to address unmet needs," Lautz said.
They have all the right tools to make their first company IVwatch work smoothly.
"You put this sensor near the intravenous injection site," Lautz said.
The company makes sensors for intravenous injections in patients to detect leaks and blockages.
Although they are still in mass production, they now produce 15,000 to 20,000 N95 respirators every day, because COVID-19 cases continue to flood hospitals across the country.
Another unique feature of these masks is that they have function test scan barcode support, so you can check their safety before putting on the mask.
Lautz said: "The things we are making are not only so valuable during the pandemic and COVID, but there are also products that are in demand before and after production."