On Friday 3rd April, La Ciotat Shipyards (LCS) announced that, as of 2nd April, they had entered into a collaboration with ID Yachting and Tilcara, both who have facilities within the yards, in order to produce protective facemasks for non-medical personnel in accordance with AFNOR SPEC reference S76-001: 2020. Both companies specialise in the interior outfitting of superyachts and are, therefore, incredibly experienced working with fabrics and textiles.

The first delivery of raw materials was received on 2nd April, with 300 masks having been produced on 3rd April. Production is expected to increase over the coming days, with a target of reaching a consistent output of around 500 masks per day.

In a joint statement, Isabelle Dimech and Thomas Tatier, the respective principals of both businesses, commented that: “Given the great need, we will produce as many [face masks] as possible for as long as we can get the raw materials.”

Isabelle Dimech and Thomas Tatier of ID Yachting

The firsts masks will be donated free of charge to priority police and public servants that are responsible for various vital functions, particularly those working with the most vulnerable people in society. An additional number will be kept for workers in charge of essential maintenance works on the LCS site.

“La Ciotat Shipyards is eager to contribute to the national effort by responding to the call for proposals launched by the government, which encourages the local production of masks intended for non-sanitary business use,” explains Jean-Yves Saussol, CEO of LCS. “In this difficult period, the fact that ID Yachting and Tilcara immediately responded to the call and joined their efforts with ours is a sign of hope. I am deeply grateful for that.”

While the facemasks produced at LCS are not approved for medical use and are not covered by the NF EN 14683 + AC: 2019 standard, compliance with AFNOR specifications gives wearers and those around them a good level of protection. However, LCS will be reminding wearers that its barrier masks do not exempt their users from implementing barrier measures supplemented by the social distancing measures in order to minimise the risk of transmission.

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La Ciotat Shipyards

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