Background information

The Swedish hygiene product company Essity reacted to the higher demand of protective masks in the society and the health care sector, and have ever since April 2020 redirected their production to manufacture masks. The rapid change has been possible thanks to a close collaboration with the state research institute Rise, which has been able to test and approve the masks in record time.

Content of measure

The Swedish hygiene product company Essity, which normally manufactures diapers, toilet paper and wound care products, was in mid-March, among several companies that the Swedish government consulted, regarding if they had the opportunity to produce any of the products that the health care needed, in the absence of emergency stocks.

A month later, Essity was one of the first companies to be able to deliver protective masks through an agreement that was finalised with the National Board of Health and Welfare. The masks are of the type surgeon type 2R, and are manufactured in the factory outside Gothenburg.

The first one million masks was donated to the Swedish health & elderly care services via the National Board of Health and Welfare.

Use of measure

The production facility in Gothenburg has the capacity to produce three million masks a month. Essity has also purchased a machine for large-scale production of surgical masks which has a production capacity of 30 million masks a month. Preparations to manufacture face masks are also under way at several of the Group’s plants in other countries.

In October 2020. Essity reported a manufacture pace of 1.2 million masks a week. The company is now expanding its warehouse by 2,300 square meters adjacent to its Mölnlycke facility. The masks are now manufactured to all citizens and not only to health care staff.

Contents

• Health and safety
• Other topics
• Solidarity

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Particular professions Workers in care facilities	Companies providing essential services	Applies to all citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government Company / Companies	Companies Employer

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	Unknown	Unknown
Form	Not applicable	Not applicable

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• Unknown
• Main level of involvement: Company level

Involvement

There is no information on the involvement of the social partner's.

Views and reactions

There is no information on the reaction to the measure by the social partner's.

Sectors and occupations

Sources

• 30 October 2020: Essity to supply surgical masks for healthcare use (www.essity.com)