Lydall of Rochester breaking ground to expand N95 masks materials production

ROCHESTER — Lydall Performance Materials is set to break ground Friday after being awarded a $13.5 million contract with the Department of Defense to help increase production of N95 masks amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Lydall produces fabric used in N95 masks. The company, which has headquarters in Connecticut and locations around the United States, as well as in Europe and Japan, announced it will be bringing all of the production work from this contract to its Rochester site on Chestnut Hill Road.

“We will be using this contract award to install two new production lines, both in our Rochester facility,” said Michelle Hafling, director of global marketing and communications at Lydall, last month when the deal was announced. “These will join our three existing lines that produce meltblown filtration media in Rochester.”

Lydall received assistance from the office of Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., to connect with the Department of Defense to apply for the contract, according to an announcement by the senator’s office.

Sara A. Greenstein, president and chief executive officer of Lydall, welcomed the agreement, will be part of the event today in Rochester.

Last month, Hafling said by May 2021, Lydall “will increase our capacity of meltblown filtration media to support the domestic production of 1.7 billion N95 respirators or 6.5 billion surgical masks per year. This is about five times our current capacity.”