ROCKFORD — SupplyCore is helping the city, Winnebago County and the state of Illinois procure much-needed medical equipment as health care providers and first responders kick contingency planning into high gear amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The Rockford-based international supply chain company typically relies on its network of tens of thousands of vendors around the world to source and transport equipment for the U.S. military and agencies such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Last week, the city and county, which have established an Emergency Operations Center at the Winnebago County Criminal Justice Center, asked the company to procure myriad “personal protective equipment,” items such as medical masks and face shields, gowns, overalls, gloves and disinfectant wipes, SupplyCore CEO Peter Provenzano said.

“We were able to hand deliver some items last week to the EOC,” Provenzano said. “We are supplying items to the city of Rockford and any municipalities that are requesting anything. We are doing our darnedest to find what we can.”

Provenzano said that his company also is procuring items for the state of Illinois after Mayor Tom McNamara and state Rep. Joe Sosnowski, R-Rockford, connected the company with Gov. JB Pritzker's office and state Sen. Steve Stadelman, D-Rockford, connected SupplyCore with officials at Central Management Services, the state's procurement arm.

“We have dozens of procurement professionals and this is what we do, day in and day out,” Provenzano said. “We hope to continue to help and we appreciate our delegation thinking of us.”

The Rockford Area Economic Development Council is using its business network to find personal protective equipment for hospitals and local governments, too, said the organization's CEO, Nathan Bryant. Bryant said he got a call after his agency sent an email blast Saturday to 1,400 manufacturers in the region.

A distillery located about 50 miles from Rockford is able to supply the region with hand sanitizer, Bryant said, although he didn't name the company. That's in addition to hand sanitizer being produced at Rockford's Grant View Distillery.

Bryant said he is attending daily morning meetings at the EOC to help first responders and local government leaders find private sector partnerships that can benefit the region as the number of COVID-19 cases in the region continues to rise.

Among the talking points, Bryant said: How to expedite education and training so that the region can rapidly increase the ranks of medical professionals and support staff in the region.

“We're literally trying to rethink everything as we deal with this outbreak. As an example, there is a CNA certificate program at Rock Valley College that lasts eight weeks,” Bryant said. “What if we could provide online content around that and have people learn at your own pace?”

Isaac Guerrero: 815-987-1361; iguerrero@rrstar.com; @isaac_rrs