Company from Viana do Castelo invests 10 million and produces 51 million masks per month

The objective of this paper production and paper transformation company, which is installed in the industrial area of Neiva, producing masks for adults and children and disinfectant wipes, began to be thought of in April 2020, in the middle of the pandemic caused by the SARS-COV-2 virus.

The Ghost Group, in Viana do Castelo, invested more than 10 million euros to focus on a new business area associated with Covid-19 and is producing, per month, 51 million masks for adults and children.

The objective of this paper production and paper transformation company, which is installed in the industrial area of Neiva, producing masks for adults and children and disinfectant wipes, arose in April 2020, in the middle of the pandemic caused by the SARS-COV-2 virus.

"We are faced with an increasingly present reality in our day-to-day life: the use of personal protective equipment” (EPI), the owner of the Ghost Group, Nuno Ribeiro, afirms to Lusa.

The production of EPI began at the beginning of 2021, after having bought three machines in which all fulfilled "product certification requirements".

The entrepreneur explained that "the focus on research, high technology and continuous improvement in the productive process, allied with market needs, contributed to the conversion and for new investments in the production of those."

Nuno Ribeiro informed, to have invested "10.15 million euros in the purchase of the three machines", and the production "in HIGH speed" began at the beginning of the year.

"We are producing 600 masks per minute, 36,000 per hour and 864 thousand a day, for both adults and children. That is, 51 million units per month," he emphasized.

In addition to the masks, the company started to produce disinfectant wipes.

"We produce about 180,000 packs a day, which represents 120 'packs' per minute," specified by the businessman.

Nuno Ribeiro said that, in view of the initial "great scarcity" in the supply and replenishment of raw materials, the group decided to invest in a machine that guaranteed "self-sufficiency and supply to other producers."

"At the beginning of the pandemic there was a great scarcity in the supply and refueling of this material and being aware of this scarcity we acted proactively, opting for investment in this type of machinery in order to have capacity for self-possession and supplying other producers," he said.

The mask "is composed of three layers, one of them 'Meltblown', which is an internal layer of TNT (non-woven fabric) that guarantees efficiency to filtration"

Both adult and children masks "were developed with a particularity that sets them from the remaining ones in the market," he said, advancing that they are "packed individually, providing a hygiene of each mask."

"They are packed in boxes of 50 individual units, in different colors. They are classified as a medical device, with a filtration capacity of more than 98%," fulfilling EN 14683, he affirmed.

The Disinfectant wipes already "ensure fast and effective disinfection of hands" and "are manufactured with material composed of natural source fibers and 100% biodegradable".

Production is intended for markets for more than 24 countries and four continents where the group is present.

"We foresee a continuous expansion around the world, being Portugal, Spain, France, Germany, Italy, Angola, Nigeria, Colombia, and United Kingdom as the main markets where the Ghost Group is present, contributing to a total of 87 million euros in sales per year," he said.

Despite the new project "still in the implementation phase," the entrepreneur said that that production "came to stay."

"For now, the products are having a very good acceptance, mainly for the differentiation and innovation that we put into each mask. As for diversification, yes new opportunity may arise in the future," he said.

The Ghost group holds the Suavecel Nunex and Fortissue brands, and employs 240 employees.

Covid-19 pandemic caused at least 2,419,730 deaths in the world, resulting from more than 109.4 million cases of infection, according to a balance sheet made by the AFP French Agency.

In Portugal, 15,649 people died of 790,885 cases of infection confirmed, according to the most recent newsletter of the General-Health Director.

Source: https://www.jornaldenegocios.pt/empresas/industria/detalhe/empresa-de-viana-castelo-investe-10-milhoes-e-produz-51-milhoes-de-mascaras-por-mes