KUALA LUMPUR: K-One Technology Bhd (KOT) has become the only company in Malaysia and in ASEAN licenced to manufacture and distribute National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Jet Propulsion Laboratory's (JPL) Ventilator Intervention Technology Accessible Locally (VITAL) ventilators targeted for Covid-19.
KOT, in a filing with Bursa Malaysia today said NASA-JPL via California Institute of Technology (Caltech) has granted a non-exclusive license agreement (NELA) to the company to manufacture and distribute VITAL ventilators worldwide.
KOT is one of the 21 global licencees that has been selected by NASA-JPL, out of the 96 companies from 42 countries that have submitted their proposals for the VITAL ventilator licence.
Under the NELA, the licence is royalty-free and offers the technology and patent rights to manufacture and sell the VITAL ventilator globally.
The NELA will expire the day earlier than the final day the World Health Organisation's Public Health Emergency of International Concern is in effect or by 1st October 2024.
VITAL is a new ventilator that is approved for use in the US by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) under Emergency Use Authorisation (EUA) tailored for Covid-19 patients.
It uses far fewer parts than a conventional ventilator, relying on parts already available in supply chains.
The VITAL ventilator, which has a flexible design and is built with fewer maintenance requirements, can be modified for use in field hospitals to address the shortage of ventilators in the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic across the world.
NASA-JPL is a United States Federal funded research and development centre managed for NASA by Caltech that carries out robotic space and Earth science missions.
NASA-JPL technology developed to enable new missions is also applied on Earth to benefit our everyday lives.
The VITAL prototype, which was created by JPL engineers in just 37 days, received a EUA from the FDA on 30th April.