Flat masks that fit the faces of children and are claimed to be capable of preventing SARS have been produced by the non-profit China Textile Institute (紡拓會), government sources said yesterday.
The institute, sponsored by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, in cooperation with five Taiwanese facial-mask makers, has produced medical-standard facial masks for children, significantly contributing to efforts to ward off a SARS epidemic, said a senior ministry official.
The institute has also cooperated with its subsidiary mask makers to develop surgical masks that pass the strict fluid and splash-resistance standard of 80mm Hg, the official said.
The masks also have a bacterial filtration efficiency (BFE) and virus filtration efficiency (VFE) of 99 percent.
In addition, the group has also increased its overall production of facial masks of all varieties to some 77.5 million units from the beginning of the third quarter of last year, marking a 2.7 fold increase over that of March last year, the official noted.
With the production of high-quality SARS-preventive facial masks in large quantities, the country is now not only capable of meeting domestic demand in the event of a resurgence of SARS but is also capable of exporting the products, the official said.
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