Private COVID-19 testing site opening in Winnipeg

New private COVID testing site opens in Winnipeg A new private COVID-19 Rapid Testing Facility is opening up in Winnipeg to help companies access testing.

WINNIPEG — A new private COVID-19 Rapid Testing Facility is opening up in Winnipeg to help companies access "quick and reliable" testing.

Penn-Co, a local construction company, originally used the site to test its own employees who were working on projects in remote communities.

"As much as we want to continue our projects, we understand that we needed to commit to protecting the health of community members in remote communities and also to ensure that they feel safe with our workers coming into their community," Rick Penner, the vice president of human resources for the company, said in a news release.

The private site is equipped with the latest equipment including several rapid testing machines, which can deliver a result on a test in two hours.

Penn-Co also said it has trained professionals who do the testing.

The company said because of the current demand for quick results for testing, it has opened its services for other companies to get rapid testing done and "keep their employees working on job sites."

"Unfortunately, the clinic isn't open to the general public, only to companies who have a service contract agreement for private COVID-19 rapid testing with Penn-Co," Eric Palud, the manager of the testing facility, said in a news release.