The first-ever face mask production facility in Northern Luzon has been launched, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) said.
DOST Secretary Fortunato “Boy” T. de la Peña said Safetech by Modulhaus Incorporated, in partnership with DOST I, launched the facility on Nov. 25.
The production facility is owned by Richard Chan, who has been a beneficiary of the Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program (SETUP) since 2016.
Chan’s family-owned corporation, Modular Plus Home System Incorporated, produces modular products like kitchen, wardrobe, and pantry cabinets, restaurant, and console tables, bathroom, and vanity fixtures, and other architectural and interior office features, de la Peña said.
The launch of the facility was attended by the different Regional Directors of the various regional government line agencies.
In March, de la Peña announced that the DOST provided P5 million worth of assistance to ModulHaus Incorporated of Agoo, La Union for the implementation of an innovative start-up project that seeks to strengthen the company’s capacity to produce locally made surgical masks.
The DOST-I through the SETUP Program assisted ModulHaus Incorporated to produce its first batch of surgical masks through its innovative start-up project.
The P5-million project fund was used in the purchase of one unit of Automatic Mask Making Machine and two units of Automatic Ear Tape Applier with a capacity that can produce 739,200 surgical face masks per month.
This year, ModulHaus Incorporatedhas successfully produced its first batch of surgical and four-ply face masks, branded as Safe Tech.
In 2020, the firm tapped the DOST to avail its second phase of SETUP assistance, focused on its proposed venture on surgical mask production.