48 2020 Massachusetts Manufacturing Awards
A
cross-disciplinary team of
UMass Amherst researchers
and clinicians in the region
have worked together to address
the need for the rapid production of
face shields, a key piece of personal
protection equipment, to improve the
safety and health of those working
on the front lines of the COVID-19
pandemic and for use in the
community who are facing a severe
shortage.
The team included faculty
and students in the Schools of
Engineering, Nursing and the
Institute for Applied Life Sciences
at the University of Massachusetts
Amherst.
The design can be rapidly
fabricated using either laser cutters
or die cutting machines without
the need for any post-processing
or additional materials, which
can increase manufacturing time
and cause supply chain issues.
Production using a laser cutter
requires minimal setup time.
Industrial die cutting processes can
be implemented in days, which can
produce face shields in the tens of
thousands per day per machine with
minimal workforce to reduce the
spread of infection.
This design can also be adopted by
hospitals and in the community, such
facilities as nursing homes, grocery
stores and other places where
people still need to gather. It can be
produced using resources that may
be idle or underutilized during this
critical period.
In collaboration with K+K
Thermoforming in Southbridge, MA,
80,000 pieces of personal protective
equipment (PPE) were produced for
health care workers and others as
the commonwealth fought the spread
of COVID-19 in early spring 2020.
UMASS Amherst
Institute for Applied
Life Sciences
City/Town: Amherst
Company Website:
www.umass.edu/ials
Nominated by:
Representative Mindy Domb
M A S S A C H U S E T T S
Manufacturing Awards 20 20
