Consortium of Australian Manufacturing Businesses Band Together to make Ventilators
A group of Australian businesses have formed a consortium with the express purpose of manufacturing ventilators needed during the Coronavirus pandemic. The group labelled the initiative the ‘Notus Emergency Invasive Ventilator Program’.
The initiative is led by Grey Innovation, a company based in Victoria, which secured $AUD 31.1 Million from the Australian federal government to produce two thousand ventilators. The consortium consists of multiple companies across South Australia, New South Wales and Victoria, including Bosch Australia and New Zealand, Hoisco, ANCA, Marand, Braemac and Planet Innovation.
“Victoria’s high concentration of engineering and
manufacturing companies means we’re well placed
to develop the ventilators quickly, and Grey Innovation
is proud to be leading the effort,”
Jefferson Harcourt, Executive Chair, Grey Innovation
In addition to the above mentioned $AUD 31.1 million granted by the Australian federal government, Grey Innovation receives $AUD 500 thousand from the Victorian state government to fast track the initiative’s feasibility stage.
“This consortium shows the strength and skill of the
Australian manufacturing sector to be versatile
and to work together. We are proud to contribute
to the highly advanced manufacturing capability
in Victoria, and particularly with this project, to help
in the fight against COVID-19”,
Gavin Smith, President, Bosch Australia
Ventilators are essential in helping critically-ill patients get through the complications of Covid-19, as they support the breathing process when lungs begin to fail. Hospitals in Victoria have around one thousand ventilators, and while many more have been ordered from overseas suppliers (using the state’s $1.3 billion dollar emergency fund to acquire much-needed supplies such as masks, gloves, gowns and of course ventilators).
Seeing the urgent need nationwide to increase the supply of life-saving ventilators to as many hospitals as possible, the consortium was formed and backed by the federal government so as to produce this requisite equipment locally. This lessens the reliance on overseas manufacturing timeframes and restrictions.
We at Tower Technology wholeheartedly applaud this effort.