Covid-19 Initiatives
Helping get PPE where it’s needed most
Covid-19 swept the world, leaving a dire shortage of PPE like face masks and intubation fields for several months.
Starting in March 2020, we began to leverage our own design and engineering teams and tap into our material suppliers and manufacturing connections to help get PPE into the hands of those who needed it most.
Face Shields
THANK YOU to all those who generously donated to our GoFundMe campaign helping us raise money to manufacture face shields and donate them to multiple hospitals.
We had a goal to address the lack of this supply at a meaningful scale. There were many commendable efforts going on to 3D print structures for shields and then add on the PET or other clear material. Our concern was the time it takes to make each mask with a 3D print process. In partnering with a fantastic cut and sew manufacturer, Ridgeview Manufacturing, we created a design to get batches of shields made in the thousands using a simple design of hook and loop straps, foam pads, and anti-fog PET. The challenge became locating the PET anti-fog shield material. This proved to be an arduous search, but in the end, SUCCESS… our manufacturer got enough supplies to manufacture up to 90,000 units for hospitals.
PENSA's face shields arrived at a time of unprecedented need, and allowed us to provide good patient care without fear
— Betul Certel, Project Manager, Bellevue Hospital
PPE Guidelines
We created PPE guidelines for mitigating the spread of COVID-19 in collaboration with MaiiC and SecondMuse. The guide gives employers a simple and straightforward overview of PPE guidance from the CDC and other health organizations.
Intubation Shields
We were approached by local hospital contacts to see if we could help create products to reduce the risk of medical professionals contracting COVID-19. We came to realize that the lack of intubation shields is a big problem at many hospitals with no consistent solutions. We felt the best thing we could do quickly was to compile information on potential solutions: some of which can be made DIY at hospitals, some of which would require a manufacturing partner.
Masks with Wire Structure
PENSA has been working with Philip J. Brown, PhD of Wake Health Additive Manufacturing Core Lab at Wake Forest. Philip has a few designs for reusable face masks that require a thin wire structure to “tent” the mask away from your mouth for better comfort. Using our in-house D.I.Wire Pro machines, we were able to quickly bend up several designs in a variety of material sizes and stiffness so his team could test out and refine concepts.
