Taguig City – More and more registered companies under the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) that are producing and manufacturing personal protective equipment (PPEs), medical supplies, and equipment have donated their products and other necessities to help the COVID-19 frontline workers and the Filipino people. This comes as the extended Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) nears week seven.
The Luzon-wide ECQ had been extended until the end of April in hopes to halt the increasing number of COVID-19 cases. Earlier, President Duterte had already called on the private sector to extend help to Filipinos by making donations and even be considerate on the salaries of workers in private sectors.
In this view, PEZA Director General Charito “Ching” Plaza said “We are grateful that PEZA-registered companies generously heeded PEZA and the President’s call to support our government’s efforts against COVID-19 and extend help to our frontline workers and those in need. With this, we sincerely express our appreciation on your efforts to be part of the solution in these crucial times of ‘bayanihan’.”
“Part of our Internal Command System (ICS) in PEZA in response to COVID-19 crisis is this initiative of mobilizing and facilitating donations from PEZA-registered companies. From their own voluntary and kind acts, we are altogether helping the government and the Filipino people cope and survive. We all share the goal to heal as one.”
To date, about 54 companies located in various PEZA zones and 16 member companies of the Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Foundation, Inc. (SEIPI) have extended help and support to the COVID-19 frontliners and the Filipinos in need.
Accenture Inc. donated equipment including desktops, smart TV, mobile phones, and headsets to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) for its emergency communication hub to systematically coordinate with the Department of Health (DOH) central / regional offices, surveillance units, and civic organizations related to the COVID-19 situation in the Philippines. Further, the company donated P1.5 Million to the Philippine Business For Social Progress (PBSP) to provide food packs to 6,000 underserved families in Metro Manila and 2,600 PPEs to frontline health workers and will make another P1.5 Million worth donation in the coming week.
KPGroup Phils., Inc. also donated 200 pieces of N95 masks to the RITM.
In the Gateway Business Park (GBP), AAC Optics Phils. Inc. and Taiyo Plastic Corp. of the Phils., donated bunny suits and relief goods.
Meanwhile, GBP-locator company Maxim Phils. Operating Corp. also donated P3 Million-worth of family food packs on top of the PPEs and other items it donated.
On the other hand, St. Lukes Medical Center in BGC, Taguig donated 48 hospital beds and 30 infusion pumps to the Philippine General Hospital.
Carmelray Industrial Park II-SEZ (CIPII-SEZ) locator Dyson Electronics Pte. Ltd. - Philippine Branch gave 11,000 pcs N95 masks and 3,000 pcs cotton gloves to RITM and Calamba City Hall (LGU).
MacroAsia-SEZ locator Lufthansa Technik Philippines, Inc. (LTPI) also gave 15 disposable coverall suits to the Taguig Pateros District Hospital.
Further, in the First Philippine Industrial Park-SEZ (FPIP-SEZ), Philippine Manufacturing Co. of Murata, Inc., B/E Aerospace - Phil. Branch, Eaton Industries Philippines, LLC-Philippine Branch, Brother Industries (Philippines) Inc., Zama Precision Industry Manufacturing Philippines, Inc., Daikoku Electronics (Phils.), Inc., JMS Healthcare PHL, Inc., First Philec Inc., Shimano (Philippines) Inc., Zama Precision Industry Manufacturing Philippines, Inc., and Changhong Technology PHL Corporation donated various items to St. Frances Cabrini Medical Center and Cancer Institute, Sto. Tomas City Government, Marian Hospital of Sta. Rosa, Los Banos Doctors Hospital, Healthserve Medical Hospital, Saint Jude Hospital, and Infirmary Hospital.
TECO Industrial Park-SEZ locator Goto Denshi Mfg. Phils., Inc. also donated PPEs to various hospitals in Mabalacat and Angeles, Pampanga area and sacks of rice to LGU ( barangay) near the ecozone.
In the Cavite Economic Zone (CEZ), Bojie Mfg. Corp. / Bojie Dev’t Corp., Cyber Power Systems Mfg. Inc., and Mr. Erny Yu of Gamzon Industries Inc. donated PPEs and medical equipment.
Moreover, Luisita Industrial Park-SEZ locator ON Semiconductor SSMP Corp., have contributed 30 bunny suits to Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong.
Other companies who have already donated to various hospitals and to frontline workers continuously extend help and support to the National Government and the Local Government Units (LGUs). Such include Texas Instrument (Philippines) Inc. (TIPI) and Sunpower Philippines Manufacturing Ltd. (SPML).
Since the start of the Luzon-wide ECQ in March, PEZA companies located at Laguna Technopark Inc. (LTI), First Cavite Industrial Estate (FCIE), Angeles Industrial Park, Alviera Industrial Park, GBP, FPIP Special Economic Zones, and Baguio City Economic Zone (BCEZ) have already donated various PPEs and other items (i.e. bunny suits, N95 and surgical masks, testing kits, etc.) for the health frontline workers and/or aid among the community. The companies include:
- Toshiba Information Equipment Philippines Inc. (TIEPI) LTI-SEZ
- Amkor Technology Philippines, Inc. (ATPI-P3/P4) LTI-SEZ
- Nidec Philippines Corporation (NPC) LTI-SEZ
- Cleanfit Technologies International, Inc. (CTII) LTI-SEZ
- MkFF Laserteknique International, Inc. (MLII) LTI-SEZ
- Terumo Philippines Corporation (TPC) LTI-SEZ
- Astec Power Philippines, Inc. (APPI) LTI-SEZ
- NEP Logistics, Inc. (NLI) LTI-SEZ
- EMS Components Assembly, Inc. (ECAI) LTI-SEZ
- Inventory Management Services, Inc. (IMSI) LTI-SEZ
- Nikkoshi Philippines Corporation (NPC) LTI-SEZ
- Katolec Philippines Corporation (KPC) LTI-SEZ
- Tsukiden Electronics Philippines Inc. (TEPI) LTI-SEZ
- Kuroda Electric Philippines, Inc. (KEPI) LTI-SEZ
- F.Tech Philippines Mfg., Inc. (FTPMI) LTI-SEZ
- Shin-Etsu Magnetics Phils. Inc. (SEMPI) LTI-SEZ
- Ushio Philippines Inc. (UPI) FCIE-SEZ
- Analog Devices Gen. Trias Inc. (ADGTI) GBP-SEZ
- Yumex Philippines Corp. (YPC) FCIE-SEZ
- CSE Power
- Mass Power
- FCC (Philippines) Corporation (FCP) LTI-SEZ
- Philkostat Inc. (PI) LTI-SEZ
- Superl Phils. Inc. Angeles Industrial Park-SEZ
- IBIDEN Phils. Inc. FPIP-SEZ
- MOOG BCEZ
- Tara Designs (Phils.) Inc. BCEZ
- Badan Building Materials Corporation Alviera Industrial Park-SEZ
- Japan Tobacco International (JTI)
- TDK Phils. Inc. LTI-SEZ
In addition to this, SEIPI member companies, also PEZA-registered, are among the companies producing, manufacturing, and donating for this COVID crisis. The following produce components for COVID equipment in the country:
- Analog Devices
- Artesyn
- Cypress Manufacturing
- Excelitas Technology
- i3 Technologies
- IMI
- Ionics EMS
- Maxim Integrated
- Microchip Phils.
- Nexperia
- ON Semiconductor
- PCA
- ROHM Phils.
- STI Electronics
- Team Pacific
- Texas Instruments (TI) Phils.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Department of Finance (DOF) have pushed for greater support in the manufacture and importation of essential products during the ECQ by granting incentives through the Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) No. 20-02, series of 2020 issued on 1 April 2020. The JMC allows manufacturing companies to sell 80 percent of in demand PPEs, medical supplies, etc. to the domestic market during this period.
Aside from this, PEZA also released numerous directives through Memorandum Circulars and Advisories to better assist its registered companies, particularly those producing and manufacturing PPEs and other medical materials. This includes adjusting the requirements in availing its incentives during this time and extending the validity of permits including the export and import permits.
As of April 13, a total of 16 companies in Luzon are fully operating while 819 are utilizing either skeletal force or work-from-home scheme and 431 are not operational or have no production. In Visayas, 18 companies are fully operational, 158 are on skeletal work force or using work-from-home arrangements while 274 have no production or not operating. In Mindanao, only four (4) are fully operational, 27 are on skeletal workforce or work-from-home arrangements while two (2) are not operating or have no production. This is according to the survey done by PEZA nationwide with about 1,749 respondents (some respondents represent multiple branches/sites). #