People Around the World Are 3D-Printing Face Shields to Battle the Coronavirus

In the UK, universities are playing a role in containing the coronavirus and helping communities cope by creating innovative solutions and using of technology to expand access. From converting shipping containers into vertical farms that provide food to those experiencing homelessness to teaching businesses how to move their work online, "universities are using their research and resources to improve people’s lives."

A group of University of Pennsylvania alums are working together to combine their skills and knowledge to make 3-D printed NIH-approved face shields for healthcare workers to use during the coronavirus pandemic. After using crowdfunding to support the project, and working with healthcare workers to perfect the design, the group is now being asked to send their face shields throughout the country.

A group of engineers in Madison, Wisconsin designed a face shield using materials and machines that were capable of producing mass quantities of the shields for hospitals. The design is now open-source and accessible to anyone on the web. They have since sent more than 1,000 face shields to the local hospital, and Ford has even picked up the design, pledging to produce more than 75,000 shields to be sent to hospitals in Detroit.

Altavian, a Gainesville, Florida based engineering company has figured out how to mass produce reusable N95 masks for healthcare workers using 3D printing technology. The mask – crucial in protecting healthcare workers against COVID-19 – is made from a common material, and with funding from donations, the company is able to produce close to 1,000 each day.

Battelle labs in rural Ohio is decontaminating n95 masks for health care workers as personal protective equipment remains in short supply amidst COVID-19. Granted emergency authorization from the Food and Drug Administration, the lab runs a separate tent station for their decontamination efforts, which follow tight structures and protocol.

When a hospital in Italy ran the risk of running out of a medical valve that was necessary to help treat patients suffering from COVID-19, an engineering company stepped in to fill the gap by 3D printing the valve. Choosing "patients over patents," the company was able to mass produce 100 valves – at a fraction of the cost of a regular valve – which have already helped at least 10 patients.

After learning that the U.S. would likely face a shortage of ventilators during the coronavirus pandemic, a group of "scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs, physicians and regulatory experts" collaborated to design an automatic resuscitator that can be used to help "less critically ill patients." The streamlined creation comes with an affordable price tag, making it more scalable for use in rural areas or less developed regions, and has also been approved by the F.D.A. for use in hospitals.

A group of three women Alaskan women banded together on Facebook to rally sewers across the state to sew masks for Alaska's front-line workers during COVID-19. Their Facebook group includes tutorials, outreach, and customer service. They have about 300 volunteers from places all over the state and have filled the requests of 56 different organizations (about 37,668). At least 14 communities across Alaska have benefitted from this. Another response is underway in Anchorage where scientists are experimenting with 3D printing N95 masks.

People in Jackson, Wyoming with access to 3D printers are teaming up and building face shields for the local hospital to help protect the frontline workers from contracting Covid-19. Although the shields aren't the same as medically-graded N-95 masks, hospital personnel say they are still helpful for protecting healthcare workers and help to guard medical equipment.

Skiers and snowboarders are donating their used snow goggles to be repurposed as personal protective equipment during the coronavirus. Helping to address a need nationwide, the snow-sport community is "providing an instant improvised answer to a critical shortage," while ski companies are also pitching in by donating KN95 respirator masks.