Honeywell International Inc. has added production of N95 masks at its plant in Arizona to help with Covid-19 containment and treatment efforts.
In a March 30 news release, Chairman and CEO Darius Adamczyk said that Charlotte, N.C.-based Honeywell "has moved quickly to expand our production capacity for N95 masks globally, and are pleased to announce our second new U.S. manufacturing line to supply the Strategic National Stockpile."
N95 masks are tight-fitting respirators that filter out at least 95 percent of particles in the air, including large and small particles. The masks have several plastic components, including polypropylene fiber mesh.
Adamczyk also spoke at a news conference at the White House. Company officials said that the Phoenix plant is one of the firm's largest and has been dedicated to the design and manufacturing of aircraft propulsion engines and auxiliary power units since 1950. The site will continue to manufacture that equipment, as well as produce personal protection equipment (PPE), they added.
"We at Honeywell are an industrial technology company and one of the industries we're in is protecting the industrial worker," Adamczyk said at the White House. "We're repurposing the equipment to serve the health care worker."
Honeywell previously said it was installing a new N95 production line at its plant in Smithfield, R.I. That new line, combined with the Phoenix expansion, will allow Honeywell to produce more than 20 million N95 disposable masks monthly to combat COVID-19 in the U.S., officials said.
Each of the expansions is expected to create 500 new jobs. Masks made in Phoenix and Smithfield will be sent to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Honeywell provides materials and products to multiple end markets, including aerospace, industrial, manufacturing and retail. The firm posted sales of $36.7 billion in 2019.