Derry Daily
  • News
  • Entertainment
  • Sport
  • Features
  • Courts
  • Business
  • Health
  • Politics
  • Jobs
Wednesday 21°CThursday 22°C

Derry Daily Derry Daily Derry Daily

  • News
  • Entertainment
  • Sport
  • Features
  • Courts
  • Business
  • Health
  • Politics
  • Jobs
CoronavirusDerry CityHealth

NWRC delivering industry support for Personal Protection Equipment crisis

written by John March 30, 2020
ShareTweet

NORTH West Regional College (NWRC) has encouraged anyone with 3D printers, laser cutters and rapid prototyping machinery to consider if they can make Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to meet the safety needs of medical and care staff during the current Covid-19 Coronavirus pandemic.

The College, through its Business Support Centre (BSC) and Product Design Centre (PDC), based at its Greystone Campus in Limavady, has answered the call by producing over 150 face guards in just two days at its state-of-the-art facility.

Production will continue in the coming days.

They have appealed to anyone who has access to laser cutting or 3D printing facilities, be it in a University, College, school or a private business, to use this equipment to assist with the supply of PPE to local hospitals, care facilities and front line workers.

Patrick McKeown, Director of Finance and Economic Engagement at the NWRC explained that the College was doing whatever it could in an effort to meet the pressing need.

He said: “We put out a call to colleagues to collect all the PPE that we have across the various areas of the college, from Hairdressing and Beauty, to Science and Technology, and Health and Social Care, and we have passed these on to those in need.

“At the beginning of last week our PDC Manager, Philip Devlin, outlined that his team would like to utilise the 3D printing facilities to develop a prototype solution for a face guard.

“We were fully supportive and gave our full backing to the team – the progress in a few short days has been significant. “

PDC Manager Philip Devlin revealed that an innovative approach has seen the number of face guards being able to be produced per day increase from under 10 on Monday to over 100 on Friday, by switching from 3D printing technology to laser cutting, optimising the speed at which the guards can be manufactured and assembled.

He said: “On Monday we were looking at open source platforms which had designs from engineers throughout the world and these were utilising 3D printers to make plastic frames to which a clear plastic guard could be attached.

“We produced some of these prototypes and provided them to local Health Trusts to get feedback from their clinicians.

“There was no point in us making these guards if they were not going to meet the health care needs from a protective perspective and we were delighted when we received positive feedback.”

This encouragement inspired Philip and the team to try and speed up the process.

He continued: “We are fortunate to have staff that are willing to be innovative and we came up with a modified Computer Aided Design (CAD) to utilise a laser cutter to rapidly speed up the process that has seen us increase the speed tenfold.

“We were delighted to deliver 50 units to the Foyle Hospice on Friday and to see the relief on their faces when they received the delivery was worth the hard work and effort that has gone into it to this point and inspired us to try and support more front-line workers.

“Since we began looking at the needs of the health and care sectors we have seen the front-line workers crying out for face guards and we are acutely aware that given our facilities there are still only so many guards that we can manufacture per day.

“This is why we are encouraging those with the resources to produce, to do so.

“It might only be ten face guards that you can produce but if that prevents ten people from getting this deadly virus it will have been worthwhile.”

NWRC delivering industry support for Personal Protection Equipment crisis was last modified: March 30th, 2020 by John

Tags:
ERIN HUTCHEONfoyle hospiceGREYSTONE CAMPUSlimavadyNorth West Regional CollegeNWRC delivering industry support for Personal Protection Equipment crisispersonal protection equipmentProduct Design Centre
ShareTweet
John

LEAVE A COMMENT

You may also like

Historic US flag stolen from Derry college

6 mins ago

New baby monitor units arrive at Altnagelvin...

17 hours ago

Durkan: Executive must act now or more...

20 hours ago

Man released over stabbing incident in Derry

23 hours ago

TV series to examine Katie Simpson’s death...

24 hours ago

Global talent descends on Derry for the...

1 day ago

End to programme developed to tackle skills...

1 day ago

Braidwater Group welcomes £11m funding to unlock...

2 days ago

Man arrested in Derry over £6k drugs...

2 days ago

Durkan calls for pedestrian safety improvements along...

2 days ago

Keep in touch

Facebook Twitter Email

Features

  • Sun, sea, spectacular views, historical charm and fabulous food. Tunisia of course

    April 5, 2024
  • Magical trip to see Santa from Belfast

    December 20, 2023
  • DD Travel Feature: Cork’s amazing The Montenotte Hotel

    April 18, 2023
  • Derry cancer survivor Noeleen McMorris reveals importance of awareness

    July 25, 2022
  • Competition! Win tickets to Northern Ireland v England Women’s Euro 2022 match

    June 17, 2022

Courts

  • Man charged to court over Derry drugs seizure

    July 6, 2025
  • Drink-driver charged to court over Derry collision

    July 5, 2025
  • Derry priest faces seven more child sex charges

    July 4, 2025
  • Man charged with possessing indecent images of children

    July 4, 2025
  • Two men in court after £1.2m cannabis find near border

    July 3, 2025

Donegal Daily

    Read More

    • News
    • Sport
    • Courts
    • Jobs
    • Features
    • Business
    • Politics

    Information

    • Contact Us
    • About
    • Advertise WIth Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Disclaimer
    • Terms & Conditions
    Derry Daily

    © 2025 Derry Daily. All rights reserved.


    Back To Top

    We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.OkPrivacy policy