The MSA respirator to be manufactured for the SNS is the Advantage 290 Air-Purifying Respirator (APR). It covers a wearer's nose and mouth.

CRANBERRY TWP — Cranberry-based MSA received a $4 million federal contract to produce respirators for the nation's personal protective equipment stockpile.

The company announced Thursday it received the contract from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to manufacture elastomeric air-purifying respirators, or APRs, which can be disinfected and re-used, for the Strategic National Stockpile.

Advantage 290 Air-Purifying Respirators, the type of respirator purchased by HHS, are a relatively new creation by MSA Safety Inc., which said it worked closely with health care professionals to improve comfort and protection for wearers.

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