After making more than 450 million reusable all-cotton cloth face coverings and more than 20 million medical gowns for the United States government, HanesBrands (asi/59528) is turning its attention to producing masks for consumers and the B2B space, including the promotional products industry.

Hanes has introduced three-ply all-cotton nonmedical masks for consumers that are reusable and washable. (Photo: Business Wire)

The Winston-Salem, NC-based apparel manufacturer said it recently completed producing and distributing the reusable face coverings and gowns as part of its support of a U.S. government initiative aimed at bolstering supplies of nonsurgical personal protection for use during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Now, HanesBrands has introduced various all-cotton, nylon and polyester blend masks for consumers under its Hanes and Champion brands. The masks are available online, in retail stores and in company outlet stores. HanesBrands said its business-to-business operations are supplying large quantity orders to organizations.

“We are proud of the commitment of our employees and our ability to quickly pivot to large-scale production of face coverings and face masks to meet important needs during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Michael E. Faircloth, group president, global operations, American casualwear and e-commerce. “In just three months, we were able to go from never having produced face masks to making more than 450 million government face coverings, designing and developing branded programs of high-quality, comfortable nonmedical face masks for consumers, and safely and responsibly reopening operations to support our core innerwear and activewear businesses. We have been able to keep tens of thousands of employees in the United States and across our global supply chain gainfully employed, productive and safe during a crippling pandemic.”

According to the company, Hanes has introduced three-ply all-cotton, washable/reusable face masks that include features like breathable wicking soft cotton fabric and adjustable nosepieces. Hanes has also introduced two-ply seamless face masks that are washable and reusable. They feature seamless stretch-to-fit construction with comfort ear loops and a breathable and wicking nylon-spandex-polyester blend fabric.

Champion’s products include a lightweight one-ply polyester-spandex blend face mask in three graphic-design patterns and colors. The lie-flat masks are available in camouflage, cloud-dye blue and Champion script logo designs. Champion plans to introduce two more mask styles this summer. In mid-July, for instance, the brand will bring to market a two-ply all-cotton face mask featuring X-Temp cooling and wicking fabric

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends the wearing of cloth face coverings to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, especially when social distancing cannot be practiced. Emerging evidence indicates face coverings act as barriers to the dispersion of respiratory droplets when worn over the mouth and nose, health authorities say.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization for face masks, including cloth face coverings, in response to concerns about insufficient supply and availability for use by members of the general public and healthcare personnel for source control. Face masks, including cloth face coverings, when used as source control, may help in preventing or slowing the spread of COVID-19. HanesBrands’ face masks are not authorized to be personal protective equipment. They are not a substitute for filtering face piece respirators or for surgical face masks.