In 2013 Knit-Rite Incorporated, a Kansas City-based manufacturer of medical textiles opened its division, Therafirm- a state of the art medical textile facility in Hamlet. Originally founded in 1923, Knit-Rite is committed to the continued research and development, manufacturing, and distribution of products that deliver healthy benefits for a better quality of life.
Due to COVID-19 and in line with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations, Knit-Rite has developed a new protective general face mask under the brand name, DTYF! Mask (Don’t Touch Your Face! Mask). The exclusive protective wear is currently being produced at both the Hamlet and Kansas City, Kansas plants.
The DTYF! Masks are being manufactured in different material options including X-Static Silver yarns, Polyester/Nylon, and Cotton/Nylon with other options including a double layer design with a knit-in pocket for inserting a filter and a single layer design without a pocket.
“Mobilizing our production to help produce these high-demand products, and also donating products allows Knit-Rite another opportunity to meet our company’s mission statement: Service — We are here to serve. This includes: supporting other team members, providing solutions for our customers — through listening, creativity, and responsiveness, making life better for the patients who use our products, and giving back to our communities,” Mark Smith, CEO, said. “We hope to make a positive impact for those we serve.”
Vice President of the North Carolina Operations Ken Hartley has become a staple in Richmond County with his many efforts to support the community and represent the company. As we are, he is very proud of the team at Knit-Rite/ Therafirm in Hamlet and their contributions to health care and COVID-19 protection wear. His response when asked about the company’s impact on crisis relief efforts details his sentiments:
“Therafirm is a medical device manufacturer that specializes in medical legwear, specifically gradient compression products. Based on our commitment to improve the quality of life, it was only natural that we became involved with fighting the coronavirus with the production of PPE, face mask.
Therafirm had specialized machinery, technicians with tremendous experience and innovation that developed a seamless mask in record breaking time. With the recent CDC recommendation that masks should be worn in public, the efforts to get the mask to market was urgent. Normally, our operation works 24 hours, 5 days per week. With the need to provide masks, we are now working around the clock, 24 hours/7-day schedule.
I am very proud that the owners made the decision to donate a mask for every mask sold, this shows the commitment to give back which is so critical to our mission. The goal will be to produce 80,000 masks each week. Therafirm is blessed to have an exceptional workforce that takes a great deal of pride to improve the quality of life for individuals, especially during these very difficult times.”
Meghann Lambeth is director of the Richmond County Tourism Development Authority. She is writing a series on how local industries are contributing to the COVID-19 effort, which will also be published at the Richmond Observer. You can read the original post here.
