First indigenous ventilator to be delivered mid-month

ISTANBUL – Demirören News Agency

A Turkish firm, supported by some other defense and technology firms, aims to deliver the first batch of domestically produced ventilators mid-April, said the country’s industry and technology minister on April 3.

“We noticed that a firm managed a pilot production of a ventilator in accordance with the international standards,” said Mustafa Varank during a live broadcast on a private TV channel, referring to BIOSYS.

“We introduced the enterprise to some Turkish high technology companies such as Baykar, Aselsan and TUSAŞ [TAI]. They started preparations for mass production. A consortium was founded, involving [appliances manufacturer] Arçelik. Now, over 100 engineers are working hard for mass production. They are targeting to start the delivery of the products as of April 15,” he added.

Several companies, some of them from the health sector, have been focused on manufacturing the breathing machines, which are critical for the treatment of coronavirus.

BIOSYS, a Turkish technology producer, made its first prototype after a five-year research and development process.
The ventilator’s mass production began at a plant owned by Arçelik, a household manufacturing company.

A demo prototype of Turkey’s first locally manufactured ventilator was unveiled on the social media on March 30.
Baykar ordered 250 ventilators from BIOSYS to support the company’s mass production drive and Turkey’s public healthcare system.

The ventilators will be donated to the Turkish Health Ministry for use at hospitals catering to COVID-19 patients across the country.

The ventilators, if proven reliable and effective, could also be a ray of hope for several countries that are facing an acute shortage in the wake of coronavirus pandemic.

Vaccine development

Ankara, Varank said, is also supporting 14 projects to develop COVID-19 vaccine and medicines through funding of up to 18 million Turkish liras ($2.7 million).

He said research in this regard was being conducted under the coordination of Scientific and Technological Research Council.

Some 24 universities, eight public research institutions, eight private firms and several researchers are working under the country’s COVID-19 platform, the minister added.

Turkey’s daily production of cloth is capable of meeting a demand of 25 million protective masks, the industry minister said.