Discover the new FFP2 mask production line in Geneva, a solidarity project that combines innovation and professional reintegration. Manufactured locally at reasonable prices, these masks are destined for hospitals in Switzerland and abroad, while creating jobs for people with disabilities.
A new FFP2 mask production line was recently inaugurated at the PRO social enterprise in Petit-Lancy, near Geneva. The aim of this project, initiated in collaboration with the University Hospitals of Geneva (HUG), is to provide protective masks at reasonable prices, while offering employment opportunities to people with disabilities or in professional reintegration.
The project was launched last spring in response to the difficulties encountered during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, and is the culmination of a collaboration between the HUG and the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation. Bertrand Levrat, General Director of the HUG, emphasizes the importance of no longer relying exclusively on foreign production chains, particularly in China, to guarantee the country's health safety.
Thanks to two million francs in funding, the premises have been fitted out and the teams trained. PRO's General Manager, Ivan Haro, emphasizes the social approach of this project: by buying these masks, consumers are supporting a vocational reintegration project. A team of mechanics and disabled people take turns working on the production line, which can manufacture up to 36,000 masks a day.
The mask produced, called “SWISS-FFP2 1602”, is a disposable, self-filtering model, capable of retaining 94% of airborne particles. Several models are available: a mask with elastics behind the ears, already certified, and another with buckles behind the head, currently undergoing certification. A special model for spectacle wearers, which prevents fogging, is also under development. The masks are sold at cost price to HUG, the owners of the production line, and currently, each mask is sold for between 1 and 1.50 francs each, a much lower rate than those observed at the start of the pandemic, when prices could reach 6 francs per mask.
The HUG, as well as other Swiss hospitals and clinics, will primarily benefit from this local production. The authorities also plan to supply pharmacies and companies, and in the near future, international sales, particularly in Europe.
State Councillor Mauro Poggia welcomed the initiative, calling it a “win-win” approach. He emphasized that this local production not only guarantees self-sufficiency in terms of health protection, but also creates useful jobs for people in difficulty, while strengthening the economy and image of the canton of Geneva.
In this way, the project symbolizes the success of a public-private partnership, where innovation and solidarity come together to offer a sustainable solution that benefits everyone.
Source : 20min
