Japanese medical equipment maker Terumo says it will produce syringes capable of drawing seven doses per vial of a coronavirus vaccine.

The announcement comes amid Japanese efforts to secure special syringes that can draw six doses from a single vial of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Conventional syringes used in Japan draw only five doses.

Terumo revealed that it will start production of the new syringe as early as late March.

The syringe is based on a type that was produced for a new strain of influenza that spread in 2009. It has a 16-millimeter-long needle, which is suitable for injection into the muscles.

The firm says the syringe is built in such a way to prevent any contents from being left over in the syringe.

The company says it obtained approval by the health ministry to produce and sell the new syringe on Friday.

The firm is already preparing for production at a factory in Yamanashi Prefecture near Tokyo. It plans to produce 20 million syringes in the year through March 2022.

Terumo Senior Executive Officer Tomita Tsuyoshi says the firm aims to quickly boost production capacity, as strong demand is expected.