{"id":17557,"date":"2020-04-04T06:56:43","date_gmt":"2020-04-04T06:56:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/?p=17557"},"modified":"2020-06-09T12:09:19","modified_gmt":"2020-06-09T12:09:19","slug":"mit-initiates-mass-manufacture-of-disposable-face-shields-for-covid-19-response","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.revoscience.com\/en\/mit-initiates-mass-manufacture-of-disposable-face-shields-for-covid-19-response\/","title":{"rendered":"MIT initiates mass manufacture of disposable face shields for Covid-19 response"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A team from MIT has designed disposable face shields that can be mass produced quickly to address hospitals\u2019 needs nationwide.<\/em><\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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MIT News<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. \u2013 The shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) available to healthcare professionals has become increasingly problematic as Covid-19 cases continue to surge. The sheer volume of PPE needed to keep both doctors and their patients safe in this current crisis is daunting \u2013 for example tens of millions of disposable face shields will be needed nationwide each month. This week, a team from MIT launched mass manufacturing of a new technique to meet the high demand for disposable face shields.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The single piece face shield design will be made using a process known as die cutting. Machines will cut the design from thousands of flat sheets per hour. Once boxes of these flat sheets arrive at hospitals, healthcare professionals can quickly fold them into three dimensional face shields before adjusting for proper face.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThese face shields have to be made rapidly and at low cost because they need to be disposable,\u201d explains Martin Culpepper, professor of mechanical engineering, director of\u00a0Project Manus<\/a>, and a member of MIT\u2019s governance team on manufacturing opportunities for Covid-19. \u201cOur technique combines low cost materials with a high-rate manufacturing process that has the potential of meeting the need for face shields nationwide.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Culpepper and his team at Project Manus spearheaded the development of the technique in collaboration with a number of partners from MIT, local-area hospitals, and industry. The team has been working closely with the MIT Medical Outreach and the Crisis Management Unit established by Vice President for Research Maria Zuber and directed by Professor Elazer R. Edelman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Initial fabrication of the shields will be done by\u00a0Polymershapes<\/a>, based in Boston, Massachusetts with plans to expand across the country through fifty-five additional Polymershapes locations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Extending the life of face masks<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When used correctly, face masks should be changed every time a doctor or nurse treats a new patient. However, over the past month many healthcare professionals have been asked to wear one face mask per day. That one mask could carry virus particles on them \u2013 potentially contributing to the spread of Covid-19 within hospitals and endangering healthcare professionals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe lack of adequate protective equipment or the idea of reusing potentially contaminated equipment is especially frightening to healthcare workers who are putting their lives, and by extension the lives and well-being of their families, on the line every day,\u201d explains Edelman, Director of MIT\u2019s Institute for Medical Engineering and Science, Edward J. Poitras Professor in Medical Engineering and Science, and leader of MIT\u2019s PPE task force that Culpepper serves on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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