By Chee Jo-Ey
THE Covid-19 outbreak has overwhelmed the world’s healthcare systems with many facing shortages of equipment, one of which is medical gloves.
Aside from hospitals, companies from other sectors are increasingly stocking up on examination gloves as well as part of their protective measures.
WRP Asia Pacific CEO Loong Mei Yin said: “From the order flows we are seeing, the usage of medical gloves, particularly examination gloves, has now extended far beyond healthcare practitioners. Many companies from a diverse range of sectors are pushing for glove orders to protect their employees as they operate during the pandemic.
“The demand in the coming months will far exceed available capacity due to these new order streams. We are accelerating our ramp-up of our production lines to the best of our ability by addressing previous operational constraints.”
Manufacturer and exporter of premium quality glove products, WRP Asia Pacific Sdn Bhd, had donated 500,000 DERMAGRIP Nitrile Ultra L S medical-grade examination gloves to the Ministry of Health recently.
These medical gloves provide protection from unwanted and dangerous substances for both healthcare professionals and patients.
The gloves are formulated with 100% nitrile (acrylonitrile-butadiene), providing an alternative solution for individuals who are allergic to natural rubber latex.
The contribution followed the company’s recent donation of over 100,000 similar gloves to the University Malaya Medical Centre.
Loong thinks it is heartening that Malaysia as a leading producer of medical gloves is positioned to play a significant role in supplying healthcare providers worldwide with their first line of defence in terms of protective gear.
She said: “We believe that charity always begins at home. Hence, our immediate thought was to help protect our nation’s heroes and heroines who are at the front line of the pandemic battling the outbreak day and night. The Covid-19 global pandemic calls for solidarity on a global scale.”
Loong also felt very encouraged that the ministries and regulators have been most supportive in facilitating the industry as a whole to enable them to operate to the best of its capabilities.
“At WRP, notwithstanding our financial constraints, we are pulling out all stops to ramp up production to meet the demand of our local and international customers,” she added.
WRP produces a very wide range of gloves with nitrile, chloroprene, polyisoprene and natural rubber latex materials. It is also a world leader in latex Balloon Catheters and Radiation Protective gloves. — April 8, 2020
