Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers have begun mass-producing disposable face shields for medical workers fighting Covid-19, which come flat-packed and can be folded into shape.
In a bid to meet the increasing demand for personal protective equipment (PPE) amid the coronavirus pandemic, a team of researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have designed disposable face shields that can be rapidly mass produced.
Made from a single piece of plastic, each shield comes in a flat design that can be swiftly folded into a three-dimensional structure when needed for use.
The face shields also offer additional protection with flaps that fold under the neck and over the forehead.
MIT has begun mass-producing one-piece face shields for hospitals fighting Covid-19 After testing a few materials that cracked and broke when bent, the team landed on the polycarbonate and polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETG) materials.
"When you're thinking of materials, you have to keep supply chains in mind," said Martin Culpepper, professor of mechanical engineering and project leader.
"You can't choose a material that could evaporate from the supply chain," he added. "That is a challenging problem in this crisis."

The face shields are made from singular pieces of polycarbonate
Each single-piece shield will be made using the die-cutting process. Machines cut the design from thousands of flat sheets per hour.
These will then be sent in t...