Apple said on Thursday that It was awarded $10 million
(roughly Rs. 75 crores) to a maker of rectal swabs and other substances for
collecting samples for COVID-19 tests in a move aimed at fostering the swab
maker's production to 1 million group kits per week by early July.
The two firms said the award would help Murrieta, COPAN
Diagnostics, create 50 new jobs and expand into a bigger facility. In addition to
providing the funding, Apple said it might help COPAN Diagnostics layout and
source new gear in York, Pennsylvania-based K2 Kinetics, and Waukesha,
Wisconsin-based MWES, both makers of industrial robotics systems.
Shortages of collection Testing and kits supplies have
slowed attempts to track the spread of the novel coronavirus in the USA. COPAN
Group, the company parent of COPAN Diagnostics, stepped up production as demand
surged, also is based in the Lombardy region of Italy, one of the areas in the the world during the pandemic.
Back in California, technical nasal swabs are made by
COPAN Diagnostics To collect samples for COVID-19 evaluations, along with vials
and sterile media used to transfer people swabs. The companies said the aid of
Apple would expand the generation of sample kits destined for US hospitals by a
recent several million per week by early July to over one million packages per
week.
Leader of COPAN, in a statement, Norman Sharples
Diagnostics, said Apple's"teams are already making a massive difference
with our efforts to scale up the creation of the sample collection and
transport kits."
Apple didn't specify the nature of the funding but
produced the award from a $5 billion (approximately Rs. 37,900 crores)
innovative manufacturing finance. The iPhone maker previously used the fund to
encourage expansions and study at its suppliers, for example, Corning, making
glass for iPhones, also II-VI Inc-owned Finisar, making chips for Apple's
facial recognition sensors.
"We feel a deep sense of obligation to do
everything we can To assist patients, employees, and communities To COVID-19
support the response," Jeff Williams, Apple's chief operating officer,
stated in a statement.
Author- Santosh Singhi received the B. S. in Electrical Engineering in 1994 from Chennai University, India. He is passionate about engineering projects in various fields