“Thanks to an agreement with Chinese companies, we are ready to buy and to import Safety Masks and Protective Clothing to donate to our health facilities – announces the FKgroup Coo, Chief Operating Officer, Paolo Cattini -, and thus concretely support our hospitals”.
In the meantime, 750 Masks have already been delivered to Italy, partly the result of a “fund collection” made to thank the Bergamo-based company for its support, which in turn was guaranteed at the time of greatest need in China.
The start of this solidarity exchange began in January: “In China – says Cattini – is based our partner company, PGM System, a minority shareholder, which markets our machines for cutting fabrics for hospital doctors. In January, with the outbreak of the coronavirus epidemic, the company cancelled the production of four machines. ”
But the situation is reversed shortly thereafter: “Just a few days later we are contacted – continues the Coo of the family business, founded in 1981 by Flavio Cattini – and we are asked to produce 24 new machines as soon as possible. We immediately started production».
FKgroup’s machines for the cutting and packaging of medical gowns and masks
To support China, Dalmine’s company will sell them at very low margin: “it is not time for speculation but only time for solidarity. And given the urgency – Cattini underlines – we have already sent four of them, with a huge effort because to ensure maximum speed we have organized a special air transport, skipping the shipment with containers because it would take too long, over a month“.
The machines, five by three metres, are bulky and require ad hoc transport: «We have outsourced the logistics to focus on production thanks to all our employees. 35 are operating in the company, those who perform office duties, however, are in smart working.”
The first deliveries, therefore, have been completed: “With these machines, Chinese customers are cutting and packaging four thousand Medical Gowns per day and over 30 thousand Masks per hour”.
FKgroup donates gowns and masks to Italian hospitals
And thanks to this production, now that the emergency has also come to Italy, FKgroup intends to import Gowns and Masks to donate: “We are able to buy and to import them relatively quickly, at most a week. We are ready to donate them to a hospital. In these hours we are already in contact with the health structures to organize and direct the donation».
In January, the solidarity consignment had been the other way round, from Dalmine to Shanghai: “Our business partner – continues Cattini – asked us for help, to buy disposable Masks to protect themselves from the virus, since they were nowhere to be found in China. We managed to buy two thousand from one of our suppliers and we donated them, sending them by air courier».
Now that the coronavirus emergency in China is slowly reducing, the Chinese partner has made himself available to return the favour: “He keeps up to date on Italian news – highlights Cattini – and as soon as the case of Lodi and then Bergamo broke out, he contacted us declaring himself ready to help us. He organized a collection among the employees. And to the 250 masks left over from our donation, they have added others purchased and others collected from the employees. A total of 750 masks were sent to us. It is a gesture of enormous generosity because in China, however, the emergency has not been completely contained” concludes Cattini.
(article published in the newspaper “L’Eco di Bergamo” dt. March, 12th 2020)
