MxD (the digital manufacturing institute) announced today that it has begun manufacturing protective face shields for medical personnel on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic in Chicago.
MxD also has produced step-by-step instructions for making these face shields to guide other manufacturers who wish to replicate this in their own communities. Instructions for manufacturing the shields can be found on our website.
MxD’s first batches of face shields were donated last week to the Alivio Medical Center, which serves the Latino community in Pilsen. Alivio Medical Center, 966 W. 21st St., was in desperate need of the personal protective equipment, or PPE, and will receive more shields as they are fabricated.
MxD and its member, Autodesk, are producing the face shields at MxD’s factory on Chicago’s Goose Island, 415 N. Cherry Ave.
MxD’s Future Factory floor, which typically is used to demonstrate advancements in digital manufacturing to thousands of visitors each year, pivoted to begin producing the face shields in late March. MxD leaders began working on the design in mid-March.
Autodesk’s high-speed 3D printer, which already was located on MxD’s factory floor, allowed MxD to triple the number of shields produced each day. MxD and Autodesk will be able to produce 30-40 face shields every other day. The shields are made of 3D-printed parts and laser-cut sheets of PETG.