Infrastructure company Larsen and Toubro (L&T) has stepped in to help India with the ongoing oxygen crisis and is looking for a long-term solution to meet the medical-grade oxygen demand in the country. The company has informed the media that it will soon start delivering 22 oxygen generators to various hospitals in India, where the scarcity is most acute. These units will absorb air from the atmosphere before converting it into medical-grade oxygen and pumping it into pre-existing pipes in the hospitals. Out of these, the parts of the first tranche of nine equipment will reach India by May 9. These will be progressively delivered from May 15 to hospitals that are in acute need and do not possess the required infrastructure to receive bulk oxygen supply. L&T is sourcing the components from various parts of the world. Once assembled at L&T’s Hazira Manufacturing Complex, each of the parts will be compact, stand-alone oxygen-making units. After testing, they will be dispatched to various hospitals, where they will immediately start producing medical-grade oxygen as per the requirements. Each unit has a compressor, dryer, oxygen generator, and two storage tanks that could cater to hospitals or medical facilities with over 1,750 beds. The units work on the plug-and-play principle. Once all the constituent parts are fabricated, the compressor allows the air to reach a particular pressure within a few minutes. The generator then starts pumping oxygen into pipes. Each of the units has a capacity range from 1,000 litres per minute (LPM) to 500 LPM. A 1,000 LPM machine could service over 100 beds simultaneously. The 500 LPM machine can potentially service 50-plus beds at any point in time. L&T’s aims to meet the long-term oxygen demand of the hospitals. According to the company, these permanent units will serve hospitals for the next 10-15 years. Image SourceAlso read: Mahindra & Mahindra rolls out ‘Oxygen on Wheels’ in Maharashtra