Vortran Medical Technology, a US medical device manufacturer, has partnered with Xerox to accelerate and scale production of the former’s GO2Vent disposable ventilators to aid healthcare professionals in their fight against the coronavirus outbreak.

The companies will also mass produce the associated Airway Pressure Monitor (APM-Plus) to be used in hospitals and emergency response units engaged in handling coronavirus patients.

Vortran Medical Technology and Xerox will work together to address the shortage of critical ventilation equipment required to support patients breathing.

According to Xerox, the companies will be quickly scaling up production from nearly 40,000 ventilators in April to 150,000-200,000 ventilators a month by June, subject to the stable supply of essential parts.

Gordon A. Wong – Vortran Medical Technology Co-founder and CEO said: “The partnership with Xerox has one clear goal – to help save as many lives as possible. With Vortran’s proven technology and Xerox’s ability to hyper-scale manufacturing, we believe we can supply healthcare providers as many as 1 million ventilators in the coming months.”

Vortran Medical Technology designed GO2Vent to be a gas-operated and disposable ventilator to be used during emergency use, natural disasters, and disease outbreaks like the prevailing coronavirus pandemic.

The GO2Vent ventilator can be ready to use within minutes and discarded after use by a single coronavirus patient. The disposable ventilator gives breathing support to coronavirus patients through a secure airway and can be operated on a compressor, oxygen or air with a minimum of 10 liters per minute flow rates, said Xerox.

GO2Vent would be able to provide continuous ventilator support for almost 30 days and can be used without APM-Plus support.

APM-Plus is a battery-operated, portable device that is connected to the GO2Vent to offer enhanced monitoring of patient status and key respiratory parameters.

Xerox would manufacture the FDA-approved ventilators and APM-Plus devices at its facility located outside of Rochester, New York. Vortran, on the other hand, would manufacture the ventilators at its facility in Sacramento, California.

The companies are also planning to analyze the data and feedback from healthcare professionals to design and bulk produce external, in-line modifications for the products to expand potential applications.

John Visentin – vice chairman and CEO of Xerox said: “Our smartest minds met (virtually) with Vortran’s smartest minds and figured out how to mass produce this critical technology. We want to help make sure doctors, nurses and paramedics on the frontlines have the resources they need to help the rising number of patients with COVID-19.”

  Coronavirus, COVID-19, GO2Vent ventilators, Gordon A. Wong, John Visentin, USA, Vortran Medical Technology, Xerox