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A Newark-based manufacturer is shifting production in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

As manufacturers across industry sectors pitch in to accelerate production of life-saving ventilator equipment, ZAGO Manufacturing says it is ready to meet heightened, global demand for specialty high-tech sealing fasteners, the company announced Wednesday in a press release.

Zago Manufacturing manufactures self-sealing screws, nuts and other components primarily for the military and aerospace industries. But, ventilator manufacturers rely on the company’s clean, sustainable-sealing solutions to protect and optimize the functionality and performance of state-of-the-art ventilator equipment.

In addition to medical ventilators, ZAGO high-tech sealing screws, nuts, bolts, and washers are critical in the production of Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Systems, which are akin to external blood pumps and are in dwindling supply. Frontline health care workers and volunteers rely on them as part of their Personal Protective Equipment when treating COVID-19 patients.

When it comes to producing medical ventilators for COVID-19 patients, every second counts.

“If we can save manufacturers, engineers, purchase managers and distributors precious time by letting them know that we are here for them hopefully we can play our part in the expeditious production of ventilators and in saving lives,” Chief Executive Officer Gail Friedberg Rottenstrich said.

“This is the most important thing we have ever done or will ever do,” Rottenstrich told NJBIZ on Wednesday. “Everything is moving very fast. Anyone who can work from home is working from home. The people who come into our plant are operating our machines. We are not letting non-employees inside our building. Employees arrive at staggered times. We have smaller shifts. When they finish their shift, all the machinery has to be cleaned and sanitized.”

While applications vary, ventilator manufacturers often integrate ZAGO sealing fasteners in the suctioning mechanism of the compressor in order to prevent airflow leakage while ensuring that contaminants are sealed out, the company said.

Unlike ordinary fasteners, ZAGO’s high-tech sealing fasteners are engineered with a rubber O-ring that when tightened, permanently seals out hazards while withstanding extreme pressure, temperature and weather. ZAGO sealing fasteners are corrosion-resistant and made in the United States with FDA-approved O-rings.

“Medical devices that contain either a suction mechanism or a pumping mechanism benefit from integrating ZAGO high-tech sealing fasteners with O-ring technology as they are essential for optimal airflow, reliability and peace of mind,” Harvey Rottenstrich, lead engineer, president and co-founder of ZAGO, said in a prepared statement.

The goal now is to ensure that manufacturers who are new to ventilator manufacturing and its supply chain are aware of ZAGO and its capabilities.