Engineering 3D Printing Face Shields for the NHS

Herefordshire & Ludlow College is contributing to the country's efforts to combat the coronavirus by using its 3D printers to produce face shields, helping to address the shortage of PPE in the UK during the current pandemic.

Linking up with 3D Crowd UK, staff within the college's Engineering Department have been busy producing a prototype of the essential face shields, which will be supplied to front-line NHS staff, before embarking on a full production run. The 3D printers, which are normally used by engineering students to manufacture the products and components that they have designed using Computer Aided Engineering (CAD) technologies, are instead being put to good use in the current crisis.

College Principal, Ian Peake, says he is delighted that the college's advanced manufacturing technologies and staff expertise are being utilised to supply NHS doctors and nurses with the equipment they need to safely treat patients.