Beximco exports 6.5 million PPE gowns to US

Beximco Group has exported 6.5 million personal protective equipment or PPE gowns to US brand Hanes for delivery to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA.

As an exporter of the PPE, Bangladesh has joined the select group of countries that manufacture world-class PPE in a large scale, a statement issued by the company said on Monday.

State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Md Shahriar Alam, and US Ambassador Earl Miller were present at Shahjalal International Airport to send off Beximco’s first shipment of PPE to the US.

“Beximco has proudly joined the fight against the global pandemic by moving swiftly to add manufacturing capabilities in PPE items such as gowns, masks and coveralls,” said Beximco CEO and Group Director Syed Naved Husain.

He said COVID-19 had changed how the world works, and that Beximco had to urgently respond.

“In just two months, we’ve unleashed our world-class manufacturing, technical and design talent to switch over and start making personal protection equipment and help increase the supply of PPE which is urgently needed in Bangladesh and worldwide.”

“Bangladesh was well positioned to become a new hub for PPE manufacturing,” Naved added.

Shahriar also lauded the role of Beximco’s contribution to Bangladesh’s economy.

He said like the rest of the world Bangladesh is also facing toughest times and trying to cope with this pandemic.

“And in these trying times, it’s remarkable to see that within this short span of two months Bangladesh was able to foray into this very regulated market with such a sensitive healthcare product with just not ten or twenty thousand pieces but six and a half million pieces. What an achievement!” he said.

Miller said this was the first major shipment of PPE gowns into the US.

“The US welcomes Bangladesh’s world-class and large-scale PPE production to the global marketplace. The Beximco-Hanes partnership is another great example of how our two great nations are combating the COVID-19 pandemic,” the ambassador said.

Janata Bank Chairman Jamaluddin Ahmed said they were “proud” to be associated with Beximco in financing the production.

Nazmul Hassan MP, managing director of Beximco Pharma, termed the event historic.

He said in the initial days of pandemic, there was huge local demand for PPE and Beximco took the initiative of providing PPEs to local healthcare services through import.

“But there was severe shortage globally as demand was increasing. We, therefore, decided to produce them to meet the demand. Today we are not only providing PPE to our local healthcare services but also exporting them to very highly regulated sensitive markets,” he said.

Beximco Pharmaceuticals is Bangladesh`s only US FDA-certified company with a global footprint in 50 countries, the statement said.

It also said the company became the first in the world to have launched a generic version of remdesivir, which has been cleared by the US FDA for emergency use in treatment of COVID-19 patients.

Beximco has also established a strategic partnership with Chicago-based Geste Designs and they are examining the feasibility to jointly invest and establish a PPE manufacturing hub in Detroit with support of the state and the city.