Shields Up

By Ben Everard. Posted

Like many other makers around the world, the staff at HackSpace magazine have put their 3D printers to work helping to make face shields (similar to those above) for medical workers dealing with Covid19.

There are many people doing this on a local level – connecting with health workers and making what they need. However, if you don't have the contacts to do this, there are also larger organisations providing a central point that NHS staff can contact when they need help, and where makers can send equipment they've made. The biggest one in the UK (and the one HackSpace magazine staff are working with) is 3D Crowd UK who are printing and distributing Prusa-designed face shields.

If you have a 3D printer and would like to help, head to https://www.3dcrowd.uk/ where you can sign up as a volunteer. There's information about what to print, what materials to use, and what process to follow to make sure the PPE you print is safe to use. If you're not in the UK, there's probably a group local to you. There's a list of major ones on the Prusa blog at https://www.prusa3d.com/covid19/, but also keep an eye on the usual maker channels.

If you don't have a 3D printer, but would still like to help, there's a crowd-funding campaign at https://www.gofundme.com/f/3dcrowd-emergency-3d-printed-face-shields to help buy the necessary materials to keep making masks for as long as they're needed.

You can print many masks at a time

Overcoming this virus will take a massive global effort, but like all massive efforts, it's comprised of lots of little things. If we all do what we can to keep each other safe, then we'll be in a much strong position when we come out the other side.

Ben Everard

Ben is the editor of HackSpace magazine. He plays with electronics and grows mushrooms, but hasn't yet combined the two.

https://hsmag.cc

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