L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 4 FRANCESCA BEZZONE NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS When the country calls, Made in Italy answers L o c k d o w n hasn't been the same for everyo- ne. In the week that brought us t h e n e w s o f i t s e x t e n s i o n u n t i l t h e b e g i n n i n g o f May, Italians sit and reflect upon the month they've just passed quarantined, many working online, others not working at all. At home with their fami- lies and at home with their thoughts, without a doubt, a time to reconsider priorities and get used to a new way of l i f e , o n e t h a t , w h e n y o u think about it, is just slower and more family focused, just like that of our grand- parents used to be. However lockdown, we were saying, hasn't been the s a m e f o r u s a l l , b e c a u s e some continue working nor- mally and I am not talking s o l e l y a b o u t h e a l t h c a r e practitioners and the armed f o r c e s ; w h i l e 9 0 % o f o u r economic sectors are silent and still, those involved in the production and distri- b u t i o n o f f o o d , m e d i c a l equipment and pharmaceu- tics are more active than e v e r t o h e l p t h e c o u n t r y maintain a shred of nor- malcy during these ill-fated times. In this context, it's nice t o s e e h o w o n e o f o u r C r o w n J e w e l s , M a d e i n Italy, has answered with courage and heart to the Motherland's needs, as w e l l a s t h o s e o f i t s workers. L e t ' s g o b a c k t o t h r e e w e e k s a g o : w e h a d b e e n b a t t l i n g t h e " i n v i s i b l e enemy" for a month, thou- s a n d s o f l o s s e s a l r e a d y behind us, each of them a name and a broken hearted f a m i l y . O u r d o c t o r s a n d nurses, as well as all others working in healthcare acti- vely and at all levels, faced the tragic reality of a system which, in spite of remaining one of the best and most efficient in the world, had b e e n l e f t u n p r e p a r e d b y years and years of govern- mental cuts and by a secon- dary sector that had failed to produce essentials, such as masks and respirators, making us fully dependent on imports. When Covid-19 h i t , o u r h o s p i t a l s d i d n ' t have enough PPE to protect their employees who began falling ill: a tragedy within t h e t r a g e d y , w i t h a l l t h e d r a m a t i c c o n s e q u e n c e s such a scenario can have, f r o m a d i m i n i s h i n g workforce, to in-hospital infections. On the 24th of March, it w a s h e a d o f I t a l y ' s Protezione Civile Angelo Borrelli to make clear that our hospitals needed about 90 million surgical masks a month and that, in moment like these a country "should be able to find them easily, just like when shopping at the supermarket." In the s a m e i n t e r v i e w , B o r r e l l i u n d e r l i n e d i t w a s p a r a - mount to begin "national production of such goods as soon as possible. We have t o c h a n g e t r a j e c t o r y , w e have to stock up, start pro- d u c i n g o n o u r t e r r i t o r y again." The request came? M a d e i n I t a l y a n s w e r e d . The first company to start producing surgical masks w a s P i e d m o n t e s e Miroglio, 70 years in the t e x t i l e i n d u s t r y a n d a n annual revenue of 577 mil- lion euro (around 590 mil- l i o n U S D ) , l a r g e l y m a d e with high quality fashion. In the first two weeks, they managed to make 600.000 surgical masks, while today they carry on with an avera- ge of 75-100.000 masks a d a y . M a n y o t h e r f a m o u s n a m e s o f M a d e i n I t a l y fashion have answered to Borrelli's plea: from Geox to Gucci, from Prada to Valentino, all the way to Armani: they all have con- verted their production to PPE making. Calzedonia, famous Italian producer of high street underwear and beachwear, did the same. This is, really, only the tip of the iceberg. Another issue Chief Borrelli underli- ned was the painful neces- sity to increase the number of ventilators for Italy's ICUs, the beds of which had been increased in the wake of the epidemic, but that had been struggling, at the end of March, to keep up with the number of infec- ted. The company produ- cing them in the country, Siare Engineering, was asked by the government to increase monthly produc- t i o n t o 5 0 0 u n i t s f o r t h e next 4 months: its leaders immediately put a stop to e x p o r t s a n d i t s 3 5 employees began working, a massive effort in support of their people and their coun- try. Helpful hands arrive from the Italian Army, who sent 25 specialized engi - n e e r s t o h e l p S i a r e , a n d f r o m f i v e c o m p a n i e s from the South of Italy, — as well as Ferrari and F i a t C h r y s l e r — w h i c h offered to produce parts. Another Italian company s p e c i a l i z e d i n m e d i c a l equipment, Eurosets, has quadrupled its average pro- duction, going from 300 to 1 2 0 0 o x y g e n a t o r s i n o n e month. But Made in Italy hasn't Making surgical masks: many Italians switched on their sewing machines to help with production (Photo: Dreamstime) Continued to page 6

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