FIU Students and Staff 3D Printing Medical Equipment

Tamica Jean-Charles/Asst. Entertainment Director

Healthcare workers around the country are in dire need of personal protective equipment (PPE) to shield themselves from the consistent onslaught of coronavirus patients. To aid workers during the shortage, FIU will provide 3D-printed masks for some in South Florida.

FIU announced Friday, in collaboration with Baptist Health South Florida, that they will construct 1,000 3D-printed reusable face shields to protect healthcare workers. The printed face protectors allow workers to protect their face masks from exposure, in addition to extending the life of face masks. 

“Our work is far from over, but I know that together we will continue to make a difference,” said President Mark Rosenberg said in a University-wide email on March 28. 

Medical workers continue to be one of the most vulnerable individuals in lieu of the outbreak. A Jackson Memorial Hospital veteran intensive care unit nurse died of COVID-19 complications, which is caused by the new coronavirus. Another Jackson Hospital nurse and her 7-month-old son tested positive for COVID-19, moments after expressing her experience of handling a patient and not receiving an N95 mask until after that patient was quarantined. 

Whether it be through a cough or sneeze, the respiratory droplets of the novel coronavirus can easily come in contact with a health care worker working in close proximity with a patient. And with the shortage of protective gear, healthcare workers are forced to reuse materials, some up to days at a time, to protect themselves. 

The face shields will protect workers from potential contact with the respiratory droplets. The protective safeguards are made of non-toxic polylactic acid, most commonly used for 3D printed items, and will be worn over a mask. 

The first set of masks will be sent to Baptist Health South Florida-affiliated hospitals. 

Miami-Dade is the state’s epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak within the state. As of Monday morning, Florida is now home to 5,473 positive cases of coronavirus, with Miami-Dade County hosting over a quarter of the cases at 1,632. 100 of those cases are among those currently in hospitals, according to the Florida Department of Health.

“This partnership with FIU is community collaboration at its best, bringing together an academic institution and a healthcare system by using innovation during a time of urgent need,” said Dr. Barry T. Katzen, founder and medical director of Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute, to FIU News.

The College of Communication, Architecture + The Arts is mainly responsible for producing the  3D masks. The college prints the masks out of the Innovation Lab at the Miami Beach Urban Studios, which is home to over 30 3D printers. CARTA’s Robotics and Digital Fabrication Laboratory and the College of Engineering and Computing are also assisting in the production. 

The idea was presented to architecture students and staff, and within a day the FIU team started printing. Architecture students, in collaboration with Baptist Health officials, began working on an open-source design for face shields in the safety of their own homes and sent the designs to CARTA staff to print. 

“This is a perfect example of our Panthers fighting back and answering to a need in our community,” said Rosenberg. “But it is only a fraction of all the work being done at our FIU to help our community during this pandemic.”