Proton's Shah Alam plant makes face shields for frontliners

CORONAVIRUS | Proton Holdings Bhd has repurposed the production lines at its Shah Alam plant to make face shields for medical frontliners to help fight the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic in Malaysia.

Proton said up to 3,000 units can be produced in a single day and the carmaker is expected to take approximately 20 days to produce the 60,000 units it has committed to deliver.

“The first batch of 8,000 units has been shipped out today (April 16) to hospitals in Kelantan, followed by other east coast states due to the logistics involved,” it said in a statement today.

Proton said the production process began with designing and testing prototypes and getting feedback from end-users to ensure the final product met their needs.

“The original design for the face shield was contributed by Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM),” it said.

It said the designers at Proton Design then developed the frame based on feedback from end-users and also added the slogan "Stay strong! We will get through this!"

It said the project team also had to plan for a production line that was both safe and efficient to meet Covid-19 health protocols.

“Fifty people, picked from a pool of volunteers, work on an assembly line to measure and cut the various components required before assembling the final product,” it said.

Proton said it also received contributions from its vendor community who are eager to get involved including Pos Logistics Sdn Bhd, who contributed over 2,000 large carton boxes used to pack the face shields and make it easier to transport them.

It said another vendor, Hicom-Teck See Manufacturing Malaysia Sdn Bhd, contributed 1,500kg of polypropylene that was used to produce the frames of the face shields.

Proton deputy chief executive officer Radzaif Mohamed said they had reached out to its vendor community to get them involved and the response has been heartwarming.

“Malaysia’s automotive sector has the capability and desire to contribute to the nation’s fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, and we can do more in the coming weeks and months to help break the chain of infection,” he added. - Bernama