TPE solutions provides local hospitals with PPE

TPE Solutions, a supplier of custom ThermoPlastic Elastomers (TPEs), has partnered with youth development organisation, The Boys & Girls Club of Leominster & Fitchburg MA, to supply face shields to local hospitals and healthcare providers.

The collaboration formed as Jonas Angus, president of TPE Solutions, currently serves as a board member of the local Boys & Girls Club of Fitchburg & Leominster, MA.

At the start of the Covid-19 pandemic he contacted Donata Martin, executive director at the club, to propose the idea of the children researching and designing a production line to make face shields. The venture was fully funded by TPE Solutions.

Within just a few weeks, members of the club developed a prototype face shield manufactured using a 3D printer. The prototype, which was tried by a local doctor, received positive feedback and so plans were immediately made for TPE Solutions to fund the purchase of two new 3D printers. 

The face shield design was based on PolyEthylene Terephthalate Glycol-modified (PETG). This material was selected for its lightweight, scratch resistance, superior optics/clarity, and lower cost. TPE Solutions purchased a significant amount of PETG sheets from Primex Design and Fabrication and set up shop in its warehouse to cut the sheets to the proper 9 ½” x 12” dimensions. The sheets were then donated to the Boys & Girls Club and used to begin production by creating 600 pieces.

The Club is now in full production making face shields and donating them to UMass Memorial Hospital, as well as other area hospitals and medical facilities that desperately need Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). The face shields are also available for sale to the general public at $15 per unit.