The Ventilator Project: How the IIT Kanpur Consortium Built a World-class Product during India’s Covid-19 Lockdown

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‘Riveting … a must-read’ – K. VijayRaghavan‘Brilliantly written … timely’ – Gopal Vittal‘An inspiring story’ – Pramath Raj SinhaA raging pandemic, a dearth of life-saving equipment, and ninety days to manufacture a world-class ventilator.On 24 March 2020, a nationwide lockdown was imposed in India in the face of a formidable adversary, the Covid-19 pandemic. With the number of cases increasing exponentially, hospitals were faced with a dangerous shortage of life-saving equipment and personnel.In response to the imminent crisis, Amitabha Bandyopadhyay and Srikant Sastri formed the IIT Kanpur Ventilator Consortium as a task force to assist a young startup, Nocca Robotics, in building affordable high-quality ventilators for India’s cash-strapped hospitals. Under the mentorship of reputed industry leaders, the task force and the Nocca team worked tirelessly against unprecedented odds – trammelled by a ban on imports and telecommuting through Zoom and Whatsapp in the face of stringent lockdown restrictions – to manufacture the Noccarc V310 in record time. This is the incredible story of its conception, creation and success, in the words of the task force co-leaders themselves.Inspiring and riveting, The Ventilator Project also offers an unmatched blueprint for business in the post-Covid era through first-hand lessons gleaned during the task force’s phenomenal ninety-day run. It proves that India, with its deep recesses of talent and ingenuity, has the potential to be a world leader in both business and social impact.

From the Publisher

16 March 2020: Prime Minister’s appeal

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launches a nationwide solution challenge through mygov.in.

This challenge is circulated among the portfolio companies of IIT Kanpur’s incubator.

23-26 March 2020: The Response

IIT Kanpur’s startup, Nocca Robotics, responds with interest to make ventilators.

They show their first (alpha) version to a US expert who gives it his blessing.

27-29 March 2020: The ninety-day saga gets set to begin

A WhatsApp group is created and the task force is formed.

The first Zoom meeting of the task force takes place on 29 March.

19-26 June 2020: Success after a ninety-day rollercoaster ride

Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) clears the Noccarc V310 on 19 June.

The V310 successfully clears patient testing at Ruby Hall Clinic, Pune, on 26 June and

is certified as fit to be used in the ICU

1 July 2020: The last task force meeting

Before the dispersal, the V310 is tested and approved by two more prestigious hospitals – Medanta and Artemis – in Gurgaon.

Nocca Robotics gears up for commercial dispatches.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Macmillan (7 March 2021)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 248 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9389104661
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-9389104660
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 100 g
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 20.3 x 25.4 x 4.7 cm
Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA