Outdoor Research To Make 200,000 Masks a Day by June

Outdoor Research will start producing masks for medical workers starting soon, up to 200,000 a day by June. They will convert a Seattle factory to comply with FDA Class II guidelines, meaning it will be able to make surgical masks and the much-needed N95 masks.

“Our 39-year history of rapidly developing cutting-edge outdoor, military, and tactical products provides Outdoor Research the ability to quickly shift to supporting the personal protective needs of the medical community,” CEO Dan Nordstrom said in a statement. “We are working with state and local officials to better protect our employees in this environment as we ramp up production in the following days and weeks.”

They will be producing 140,000 ASTM level-3 (high-barrier) masks per day by April/May; 50,000 N95 masks per day by May/June; and “thousands” of ASTM level-1 (low-barrier) masks per day by an unspecified date.

“We have made significant resource allocations to this over the last three weeks,” said Jason Duncan, head of tactical innovation. “We felt we needed to lean in on this due to our unique domestic capabilities. We feel that we can offer a unique perspective due to our quick-pivot raw material, design, and engineering teams.”

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@outdoorresearch is responding to the needs of the medical community by manufacturing PPE to help alleviate the global health crisis. As an ambassador for OR, for over 10 years, I can’t be more proud of this brand and it’s commitment towards necessity. It’s a surreal time, that’s mentally taxing for many. And although I’d love to be out in the mountains, doing my thing, I’m doing my part by staying home, keeping informed, and supporting those on the front lines. Together, we will get through this. The photo of me climbing was taken by @johnpricephotography in one of my favorite places to climb; the Bull River. #coronavirus #stayhome

A post shared by Gordon McArthur (@gord_mcarthur) on Apr 2, 2020 at 3:56am PDT