Manufacturers Are Stepping Up to Produce Personal Protective Equipment

Manufacturers across the country have started repurposing or retooling their factories to produce much needed medical supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE). Companies with 3-D printers are being utilized to create face masks and shields and components for medical devices.

Here’s just a glance at what is going on in manufacturing. If you have any questions about manufacturing PPE, one of our attorneys can assist you.

Manufacturing Industry:

• Cycling manufacturers are making face masks and face shields and parts for ventilators and PPE, and even hydroalcoholic gel for hospitals.
• A firearms accessories manufacturer is now making protective gowns and masks. Automobile manufacturers are building respirators and ventilators. Fashion designers and clothing factories are producing face masks. A window manufacturers is producing face shields and exam boxes.

Medical Technology:

• The U.S. medical technology industry as a whole is working to meet the urgent demands by increasing production and are finding new suppliers. According to Scott Whitaker, president and CEO of AdvaMed, an international medical technology association, “We’re exploring ways to repurpose, retrofit, and reimagine the production of PPEs. Factories that typically make shoes and underwear and diapers are being retooled to make surgical gowns and gloves. Industrial paint masks and automotive respirators are being transformed into health care-specific safety masks.”
• The Global Center for Medical Innovation has designed two different face shield types (foam and rigid) that are ready for prototyping and production for manufacturers wishing to produce face shields for healthcare providers. GC
• The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Department of Engineering has partnered with designers, a hospital, and team of medical providers, and a prototyping company to create an  open source design for a medical face shield.

State Level:

• States are setting up webpages for sourcing approved COVID-19 medical supplies and PPE.
• Missouri Enterprise is working to identify manufacturers who currently produce or can produce N95 medical masks and medical gowns. They will help companies convert their production capabilities over to meet PPE needs.
  
  Missouri Enterprise also has a supplier scouting program that links to 51 Manufacturing Extension Partners. An MEP identifies needs for a supplier in their state and other MEPs look for potential resources to meet the need.

Federal Level:

• The FDA is looking for manufacturers who can produce FDA-approved PPE. They provide guidance on surgical and non-surgical medical gowns and N95 respirators and surgical (face) masks.

For additional COVID-19 related information, go to our Coronavirus/COVID-19 Resource Center.

Posted by Attorney Ruth Binger with assistance from Brenda Christmas Marlowe, Marketing Manager. Binger serves both emerging and mature businesses concentrating in corporate law, intellectual property and technology law, cybersecurity, digital media law, and labor and employment law. Her commitment to the success of small to medium-sized businesses, and her understanding of multi-faceted issues inherent in operations, are what distinguish Binger’s practice.