In the midst of the hustle and bustle of handling the Covid-19 pandemic, various problems arose. One of them is the increase in the need for medical masks for health workers. Registered at RSUD Dr. Soetomo, Surabaya alone needs 5,000 medical masks every day. The increase in demand, of course, has an impact on the increase in the price of medical masks in the market, which turns out to be 100% imported. On the other hand, many MSMEs have fallen due to losing their customers.
Seeing this reality, Danang Widoyoko, a 1991 alumnus of Nuclear Engineering, felt compelled to roll up his sleeves for his nation and country. He gathered shoe craftsmen in Mojokerto to make the necessary medical masks. The goal is to see the wheels of the MSME economy
in Mojokerto while providing medical masks for health workers at affordable prices.
The absence of provisions regarding the manufacture of medical masks did not dampen his steps. Mas Danang bought several brands of medical masks and then dissected them to be studied and discussed with shoe craftsmen. The shoe press machines belonging to the craftsmen were modified into press machinesmedical mask. The customer’s concern about the level of sterility of his products was answered by looking for a cheap and fast sterilization technology. The knowledge he gained in Nuclear Engineering led him to the choice of irradiation using electron beams .
Finally, after getting a distribution permit from the local government, his hard work paid off. Starting from orders from clinics owned by doctors, currently they have managed to produce 5 thousand masks per day. The Governor of East Java even took the time to visit his workplace. “Hard work, perseverance and tenacity are the keys to success,” said Mas Danang.
