“Can you turn to produce masks?”At the beginning of March, Ye Xianping received an urgent request from the mayor of Fucecchio, Firenze, Italy.

Ye Xianping is from Qingtian County, Zhejiang. He has almost lived in Italy for 30 years. Promoted by him and other overseas Chinese people from Qingtian County in Italy, friendship was developed between Qingtian County and Fucecchio in 2016. Ye Xianping manages a private garment processing plant in Fucecchio, and his plant is renowned among local people.

Under the epidemic situation, Ye Xianping agreed to start producing masks in face of the crisis without hesitation. “Local hospitals and the municipal government are in urgent need of masks. I have no time to consider, and I must perform the transformation,” he said in a resolute voice. 　

Ye Xianping did as he promised. He suspended the garment production lines of his plant and called the workers together to build mask production lines. The raw materials of medical surgical masks were supplied by the local government, and Ye Xianping’s plant was in charge of outsourced processing.

Only after he commenced the mask production did he find many difficulties.

Without specialized machines for mask production, his workers could only use garment sewing machines, and at times, they had to operate by hands. Thus, the production efficiency wasn’t high. “Only 5,000 to 6,000 masks per day are produced,” said Ye Xianping. To increase production efficiency, Ye Xianping is contacting related domestic enterprises, in hope of introducing specialized machines for mask production into his plant as soon as possible. 

In the period of epidemic prevention and control, it was difficult to employ workers. Ye Xianping offered his workers high wages to increase their enthusiasm for production. “In the beginning, the income from mask processing is only enough for paying workers’ wages. Soon, I have to personally subsidize the mask production, or else it is impossible to ensure normal payment of employees’ wages.”

At present, Ye Xianping’s mask production lines are still run at a loss. “I have to subsidize about 5 euro cents for the production of each mask.”In the face of this disaster, we have to do what we shall do,” said Ye Xianping.  　

For a period, Italy has been subject to the grim epidemic and called the “epicenter” in Europe. Ambulances of hospitals come to Ye Xianping’s plant to get masks every two to three hours. This tugs at his heartstrings. “Sometimes when we have just finished producing 1,000 to 2,000 masks, they are transported away urgently,” said Ye Xianping.

Apart from sticking to mask production, Ye Xianping also actively took part in donation activities organized by local overseas Chinese organizations. He raised funds for local hospitals to buy anti-epidemic medical materials, including masks, protecting clothing and gloves.

“As one of the overseas Chinese in Italy, I’ve just done what I am supposed to do,” he said. 　

“能不能转型生产口罩？”3月初，叶先平收到了意大利佛罗伦萨省富切基奥市市长的紧急请求。

叶先平祖籍浙江青田，旅居意大利近30年，在他和其他青田籍旅意侨领的推动下，青田县与富切基奥市于2016年缔结为友好城市。他在富切基奥市经营着自己的服装加工厂，在当地小有名气。　　

疫情当前，叶先平临危受命，他一口答应下来。“当地医院、市政府等地口罩急缺。我没有时间考虑，必须要转型。”他坚定地说。　

说干就干，叶先平停掉了工厂的服装生产线，召集工人组建起口罩生产线。医用外科口罩的原材料由当地政府提供，叶先平的工厂负责代加工。

真正开工后，他才发现困难重重。　　

没有专业的口罩生产机器，工人们只能用服装缝纫机生产，有时还得手工操作，效率不高。“一天只能生产五六千个口罩。”叶先平说。为了提高生产效率，叶先平正在和国内相关企业对接，希望尽快引进专业的口罩生产机。　　

疫情期间，招工不容易。叶先平为工人们开出了高工资，鼓励他们的生产积极性。“起初，加工口罩所得的收入勉强能够支付工人的工资。很快，我就得自己往里补贴，才能保证工人的工资能正常发出去。”　　

目前，叶先平的口罩生产线正在亏本运营。“一个口罩大约需要我自己补贴5欧分。” 遇到大难了，我们该付出还是要付出。”叶先平说。　

一段时间来，意大利疫情严重，被称为欧洲疫情的“震中”。叶先平的口罩生产厂外，每隔两三个小时就有医院的救护车来装口罩，这让他揪心不已。“有时候刚刚生产了一两千个口罩，就被紧急运走了。”叶先平说。　　

除了坚持生产口罩外，叶先平还积极参与当地侨界组织的捐赠活动，筹集资金为当地医院购买口罩、防护服、手套等防疫医疗物资。

“作为意大利华侨华人中的一员，我只是做了自己应该做的。”他说。