Oswestry seat cover company puts skills to work making PPE for doctors

Turtle Covers, based at the Gledrid Industrial Park near Oswestry, are manufacturing the in-demand clothing for doctors at the Oswestry-based hospital.

The company had seen news coverage about personal protective equipment (PPE), and decided to put their skillset and resources to use by making scrubs.

Marc Williams, managing director at Turtle Covers, said: “We decided to start sewing scrubs as we wanted to contribute to the coronavirus efforts and also support NHS staff during the pandemic.

“We have a wealth of experience in the company – many members of our team have previously worked in clothing factories – and we thought it would be a shame for skilled people to be unproductive during this time.”

Special machinery had to be purchased by the company in order to produce the scrubs, but once it was in place, the machinists were able to manufacture them quickly.

“On a personal level, I’ve also been a patient at RJAH previously, and I’m still extremely grateful for the care I received, so supporting the hospital with scrubs is one way I’ve given thanks,” said Marc.

“We are also able to manufacture scrubs for other NHS and healthcare organisations if others are experiencing a shortage. People can email us at info@turtlecovers.co.uk for more information.”

A total of 500 sets of scrubs were produced by the company and have been distributed to consultant surgeons and other doctors at RJAH.

Stacey Keegan, acting chief executive at RJAH, said: “I’d like to say a huge thank you to the team at Turtle Covers for producing and supplying us with scrubs – it’s great to see so many local companies supporting the NHS and wider community, and for that we are very grateful.

“It is wonderful to see the country as a whole pulling together to support each other and the NHS. Together we will come through this period.”

If anyone has any offers of help for RJAH during the coronavirus pandemic, email rjah.covid-19@nhs.net.