Seven companies from the Technological District of the City of Buenos Aires were united to provide a facial shield to Buenos Aires public hospitals and other health entities, and in this way, collaborate against the spread of the Coronavirus.
Companies from the Technological District came together to develop and produce an innovative model of “total face” shield, and thus donate them as protection supplies to public hospitals and health entities in the City of Buenos Aires.
The #3DFaceShield initiative came from the companies Accion Point, CTL, Datastar, G&L Group, MegaTech, Stylus and Trimaker (the latter with the know-how and expertise in design and production modeling with 3D printers); Those who, in dialogue with District authorities, put together and presented the #JuntosHacemosMas project to FACOEP, the entity in charge of billing public hospitals for prepaid and the CABA Ministry of Health.
As none of the companies had the type of equipment, they had to make an initial investment to acquire ten semi-industrial 3D printers along with printing materials, and also train personnel to be able to operate the machinery.
Héctor Lew, General Manager of MegaTech, says that “The idea started in one of these early mornings when I couldn’t sleep thinking about how we could cooperate from our position. In our current executive meetings, I proposed it to the other companies from the District, and the initiative was originated”.
In parallel to the investment, the group developed and adapted a model of a face shield, with a novel design that they implemented under European standards, and that allows them to make more than 200 units a day.
In particular, the design was carried out by the Trimaker team, based on a Czech model that optimizes to the maximum the necessary material to make each of the facial shields. Also, the model was controlled by professionals in the country. It provides a production between 800 and 1000 units per week, which are then distributed to the hospital’s City.
The face shields have been validated by FACOEP SE and the CABA Ministry of Health – in association with the Undersecretariat for Economic Development, under the Ministry of Economic Development and Production of the Buenos Aires City.
The campaign has already channeled several donations: first to FACOEP, the Pirovano Hospital, and the Ministry of Health, continuing with its production to supply other hospitals and health entities. In this way, the group achieved that the deliveries of these supplies were formalized directly through the City’s health authorities to quickly cover 100% of the needs of the UFU’s (Febrile Emergency Units).
Some collaborators were devoted to printing work and must pause their tasks to put the focus on this solidarity project.
“Our goal is to collaborate with health workers, who put their lives at risk every day to protect us, providing them with an element of care is our grain of sand to help them,” says Juan Guido Camano, President of CTL.
“It is the first time that we have entrusted ourselves to such a task, and we hope that it will be the beginning of many other actions.” Concludes Franco Schillagi, CEO of Accion Point.
More information itjuntoshacemosmas@gmail.com
