The Laurentian University community continues to step up and do its part in the effort to fight the spread of coronavirus. Our latest project is geared towards helping healthcare workers on the frontlines against the pandemic.
Through the use of 3D printers in the Maker Space of the Cliff Fielding Research, Innovation and Engineering Building, we have been able to create headbands for face shields. These headbands, an open-source design created by Swedish firm 3D Verkstan, are simple, versatile, and easy to produce. Materials like clear plastic are affixed to the headbands, which healthcare workers then wear as face shields in order to protect them from hazardous materials, including the virus.
This project started with a simple desire to help. Gisele Roberts, Laurentian’s Manager of Innovation and Commercialization, recently put in a call to Health Sciences North to see what aid Laurentian could provide. Giving a full accounting of all the tools we have at our disposal, it was decided that we would start manufacturing headbands.
In addition to Laurentian’s dedicated team of researchers and innovators, we are cooperating with colleagues at partner institutions to bring this project to life. The Northern Ontario School of Medicine recommended the design, while Cambrian College, Collège Boreal, Science North, Lively District and Lo-Ellen Park Secondary Schools, and industry partners Ionic Mechatronics have been drafted in to produce material. The first 300 headbands have already been delivered to HSN; hundreds more are on the way.