In the fight against the coronavirus, Bosch has now started fully automated production of respiratory masks. The system concept was developed by Bosch Special Machinery.
Dr Volkmar Denner, Chairman of the Board of Management of Robert Bosch GmbH, has now launched the first specialised system for the production of mouth-nose covers. at the Bosch plant in Stuttgart-Feuerbach put into operation.
„Containing the coronavirus is a task for society as a whole. By our employees with masks from our own production We are helping to take the pressure off the market by equipping our plants. We are also creating the conditions for a safe restart of the plants and the protection of our employees.“
Dr Volkmar Denner.
Following the coordinated ramp-up by the end of June, the company will start five lines at four locations worldwide more than half a million masks per day manufacture. The system concept was developed by Bosch Special Machinery. Bosch makes the design plans available to interested companies free of charge. More than 30 companies have already requested design plans for the special system from Bosch.
Production line for mouth-nose covers
Respiratory masks - together with other hygiene measures - are a suitable means of reducing the risk of new infections with Covid-19. The fully automated system for the production of face masks, which was developed by Bosch Special Machinery in just a few weeks, is now being installed in identical design at several of the company's sites. In addition to the Industry 4.0 control centre in Stuttgart-Feuerbach - two lines are planned here - will also be connected to the Bosch locations in Naganathapura, India, and Juárez, Mexico, mask production is ramped up on a weekly basis. The production network is completed by a system in the Rexroth plant in Erbach (Odenwald). By the end of June, the production volume of the five production lines is expected to total more than ten million units per month.
In-house production from Bosch counteracts supply bottlenecks
Bosch mainly uses the mouth-nose covers for to protect around 400,000 employees worldwide in. Bosch intends to make any excess capacity available externally, subject to country-specific approvals and requirements. In addition, Bosch gives other companies free access to design plans for the systems, technical drawings and assembly instructions and provides an insight into the packaging system and distribution of the masks. „By using our specialised systems, we reduce dependencies: Masks can be produced on site - where they are needed,“ says Denner. If required, Bosch Special Machinery can advise interested companies and deliver finished systems.
Source: Bosch
