Mountain company to play significant role in COVID-19 vaccine distribution

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    ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) — A mountain company will soon play a big role going forward in supporting the COVID-19 vaccine distribution cold chain.

“The mission statement of Thermo Fisher is really to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer,” said Michael Meguiar, vice president of global operations at Thermo Fisher Scientific.

Meguiar’s statement couldn’t hold truer right now in the midst of a pandemic, as positive COVID-19 cases across North Carolina and across the U.S. are at an all-time high.

“This team locally in Asheville, North Carolina, and Buncombe County is so important and literally saving lives as we get closer to a vaccine rollout,” Meguiar added.

Thermo Fisher prides itself in being a world leader in serving science.

“We actually are made up of a collective team of about 75,000 employees globally, and our lab equipment division, which is right here in Asheville,” Meguiar said.

In the coming days, weeks and months, the work done here will be more important than ever.

With a COVID-19 vaccine like Pfizer’s set to hit the market soon, it must be stored at negative 70 degrees Celsius, which is equivalent to negative 94 degrees Fahrenheit.

The company has already noted how big of a challenge it is to distribute and store the vaccine because of those temperature requirements.

That’s where a company like Thermo Fisher steps in to help.

“This factory’s producing hundreds of units every day to support the front lines of the COVID-19 response,” said Keith Howell, Asheville site leader and director of operations at Thermo Fisher.

“We produce the ultra low-temperature freezers which are so critically important in the process of taking vaccines from production all the way to administering a vaccine,” Meguiar said.

That production is not going to slow down any time soon. In fact, the company is even looking to hire more help.

“This factory is currently undergoing the largest volume ramp that we’ve seen ever in this factory,” said Howell.

It’s a vital role for a mountain company working during a global pandemic.

“2020 has really given everyone a unique curveball, and here in our factory, it’s an honor to be a part of what we’re doing,” Howell added.

Pfizer said an analysis found the vaccine to be more than 90% effective.

Mission Hospital’s chief medical officer said the vaccine could roll out on the market before the end of the year, but it wouldn’t be available right away in large quantities.

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