Winnebago Industries has begun manufacturing medical masks for MercyOne North Iowa Medical Center. The masks are being made by employees at the company’s Stitchcraft facility in Forest City, Iowa, which houses industrial sewing capabilities and produces soft goods for Winnebago Motorhome production. The facility typically specializes in creating items such as seats, sofas, cushions, pillows, draperies, shades, valances, mattresses, bedspreads and a host of other sewn parts.
“As the health crisis has evolved, we have focused our efforts on determining how we can best use our company’s resources to provide support in overall relief efforts and specifically efforts that positively impact our local communities,” Winnebago Industries Vice President of Operation Chris West said. “We are blessed to have a workforce who is dedicated to supporting our local community needs and want to thank all of our caring employees who have helped make this critical project a reality.”
Winnebago Industries reached out to the state of Iowa and worked with Iowa Homeland Security & Emergency Management as the health crisis escalated to offer potential mask production services. A connection was made with MercyOne North Iowa Medical Center, and the research and design process quickly began. The first shipment of masks was delivered on Monday, March 30, and additional deliveries will continue to fill the first production run of approximately 6,000 masks. The masks are being donated to MercyOne North Iowa Medical Center and will be used by clinical staff as they treat patients.
“Thank you to the team at Winnebago Industries for helping address a national shortage in medical masks,” MercyOne North Iowa President Rod Schlader said. “Community partnerships like this are the perfect example of how good can come from this very critical public health situation. The safety of our colleagues and patients is our top priority, and this generous donation from Winnebago Industries brings a crucial boost to our efforts to secure personal protective equipment. We are proud to live and work in north Iowa, where our business and health care organizations can quickly come together to serve our communities in this time of crisis.”
