Medical supplies are quickly dwindling down, so major fashion brands are switching to manufacturing N95 masks and other protective garments.
At a press conference held earlier this month, New York governor Andrew Cuomo announced there was a shortage of personal protective equipment for medical professionals, including N95 masks and protective gloves.
According to the FDA, an N95 mask is used by medical professionals because it is designed to tightly fit the face and to filter out at least 95% of microparticles. A normal surgical mask doesn’t fit tightly enough to form a seal around the nose and mouth.
In response to Governor Cuomo’s call for businesses to help, designer Christian Siriano announced his team and him will dedicate themselves to producing more masks.
“If governor Cuomo says we need masks, my team will help make some,” Siriano said. “I have a full sewing team still on staff working from home that can help.”
Following Siriano’s declaration, many more designers followed suit.
Burberry donated 100,000 surgical masks to healthcare providers and turned its Yorkshire trench coat factory into a facility making non-surgical gowns and masks for British patients.
Other brands such as American Apparel and Reformation have offered up their services to help produce masks. Faculty and students of the Fashion Institute of Technology have also joined the mask making efforts.
However, the masks being produced are not CDC approved for medical use.
Designer Rachel Comey took to social media, announcing that hospitals need medical gowns more than masks right now.
“Hello fellow manufacturers: reach out to these emails (COVID19supplies@esd.ny.gov or sourcingcovid19@edc.nyc) to discuss manufacturing needs,” Comey wrote. “Currently from US in fashion, they need gowns.”
The Council of Fashion Designers of America is providing several resources to fashion designers, including a from New York City Economic Development Corporation for any company capable of producing CDC grade personal protective equipment must fill out.
