BATH, Maine — EDITOR'S NOTE: In the above video, NEWS CENTER Maine's Clay Gordon demonstrates one of the proper ways to take off protective gloves.
A team at Bath Iron Works is using 3D printers to create plastic face-shield holders, and on Monday delivered 75 shields and holders to Maine Medical Center to help protect staff during the coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak.
Another 25 shields and holders are scheduled to be delivered to Central Maine Medical Center, spokesman David Hench said Tuesday.
BIW Engineering's Advanced Concepts Team and General Dynamics Additive Manufacturing working group designed the plastic holders, which wrap around the head at the forehead and secure a clear plastic shield, provided by the BIW Sign Shop and laser-cut to size, according to a release.
"The replacement face shield and holder is lightweight and designed to be printed quickly compared to the more robust, reusable ones that are standard in hospitals," the release said.
Social Distancing Video
BIW previously worked with Hardshore Distilling Company in Portland, using its 3D printer to produce a device that allows hand sanitizer dispensers to be refilled, increasing the availability of hand sanitizer for its workers.
The team is running a 3-D printer 24 hours a day to produce 12 holders per day. Two additional printers have been ordered.
"We will keep making and delivering them as needed, with our capacity increasing as the new printers come on line," Hench said Tuesday.
At NEWS CENTER Maine, we're focusing our news coverage on the facts and not the fear around the illness. To see our full coverage, visit our coronavirus section, here: /coronavirus
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