225625
229719
Business  

Stanfield's reacts to COVID-19 with 'pivot' to medical gowns

Stanfield's to make gowns

A historic Canadian undergarment factory famed for long johns and boxer shorts is about to rapidly reinvent itself as a domestic producer of medical gowns.

Stanfield's Ltd. of Truro, N.S., is among five firms that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Tuesday have received letters of intent to manufacture personal protective equipment and clothing for front-line health workers.

Jon Stanfield, the chief executive of the fifth-generation family firm, said in an interview he's already sourced approved fabric from nearby Intertape Polymer, and is ready to be producing medical clothing within days.

The 48-year-old says once the federal government provides details of its offer, the company could bring back over 75 of its over 200 staff who were sent home earlier this month as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He describes the restart as a "pivotal" signal that Western governments are moving to ensure there are domestic suppliers of medical gear and gowns crucial to public safety in the future.

Stanfield said the firm has patterns and machinery that would initially produce more than 2,000 gowns daily per shift to help feed a Canadian demand for garments that emerged after the pandemic sliced supply from China.

The businessman — the grand nephew of the late federal Tory leader Robert Stanfield — said he's being driven by a sense of mission akin to the sudden demands created by wars and shifts in the Canadian economy.

In the 1890s, the company invented shrink-proof heavy woolen underwear used by workers during the Klondike gold rush; in the First World War, the factory was converted to provide wool blankets to keep soldiers warm in the trenches; and in Second World War, it supplied base layers of underclothing.

Innovation and survival is part of his firm's history, said Stanfield, adding, "my forefathers ... invented the long john."

Stanfield said he plans to provide some gowns through the company's overseas supply chain, but also intends to re-establish a Canadian domestic supply that free trade and offshore production have almost wiped out.

"Isolation gowns, reusable and disposable, are made in China, so to build a small resource base in Canada is important to dealing with crises like this in the future," he said.

"You can't have your supply chain be permitted to suddenly fall to zero like this."



More Business News

225429
233370
Data from CryptoCompare
RECENT STORIES
233370
228921
227490
Castanet Proud Member of RTNDA Canada
225778
Press Room
225779