New London facility will help close gap in local supply chain and help ensure future pandemic preparedness
LONDON — Ontario has secured a stable and reliable domestic source of medical grade nitrile gloves through Medicom Group Inc.’s $165 million investment to construct a new 140,000 square-foot production facility in London. Medicom’s investment supports the government’s effort to shore-up domestic production of medical supplies and increase the province’s resiliency against future emergencies while creating 135 new, good-paying jobs in the region.
The first of its kind in Canada, the new plant will ensure that Ontario maintains a robust stockpile of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to safeguard health care, hospital and frontline workers across the province. Medical grade nitrile gloves manufactured to Health Canada standards have become widely adopted as the standard glove across multiple commercial segments including the dental, industrial, medical, research and retail sectors.
“During the last pandemic, we experienced the difficulties that arose from needing to have critical supplies imported from overseas when we needed them most,” said Vic Fedeli, Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. “The lessons we learned emphasized the importance of building a strong, resilient and self-reliant manufacturing supply chain. This investment will help enhance public safety and pandemic preparedness while creating new, good-paying jobs for workers in the London area.”
To support this project, the province is investing $30 million which will help build the facility and ensure millions of medical grade nitrile gloves are available for use by Ontarians. This undertaking will help generate hundreds of indirect jobs while further strengthening Ontario’s PPE supply chains and preparedness against future challenges. Ensuring Ontario continues to build a strong and resilient economy through strategic investments in our manufacturing sector is a part of Ontario’s Plan to Stay Open. Attracting investments that will increase production of critical supplies, improve the province’s competitiveness, and fill gaps in the domestic supply chain will ensure Ontario remains open for business while creating new jobs for Ontario workers.