Tampa Ready 3D
Tampa, FL
Tampa Ready 3D
Our Mission:
Printing 3D masks and face shields to be distributed throughout our Tampa Bay community.
Tampa Community Pulls together to 3D Print Face Shields and Masks for Medical Professionals during COVID-19
Tampa, FLA.—-A local Tampa businesswoman, Lorri Brown, saw the need to support our medical community and first responders during this unprecedented time of fighting COVID-19.
As news spread of the dire shortage of medical supplies throughout the country, Lorri feared Tampa would soon be in the same position. She came across the idea of 3D printing medical masks, an approach that is springing up across the country to help decentralize and supplement the production of medical supplies from strained manufacturers.
To garner support and funding for printing supplies, Lorri launched a GoFundMe page, catching the attention of Tim Keeports, the President of the Old Seminole Heights Neighborhood Association (OSHNA). Keeports quickly looped in Michael R. Guinn, an OSHNA Board Member, and also a Biomedical Engineer and an Acquisition Program Manager for the U.S. Department of Defense, who is a known subject matter expert in 3D printing.
In a matter of hours, Michael was able to offer fourteen 3D printers, and Pastor Bruce Moore of Christ Fellowship Church Tampa offered to provide lab space for the printers, assembly effort, and future volunteers. The community collaboration is named “Tampa Ready”, which has a closed Facebook group that those looking for more information can request to join (https://www.facebook.com/groups/MRG3D ). For those looking to volunteer, go to https://timecounts.org/tampa-ready-3d
The four–person team held one planning meeting before rapidly moving to installation, beta-testing prototypes, and is now in full production after only two days. Within 3 days from inception, the team had their products utilized by medical professionals in the community. The team has been working tirelessly and are now ready to receive a small number of properly screened volunteers. Volunteers will be spaced apart for social distancing and will assist with the 24/7 production, packaging, and delivery of the much-needed face shields for Tampa’s medical community. While this is not the most cost effective way to manufacture these masks, with the economy’s production and logistical system being compromised, local manufacturing must be used to meet the needs of our medical professionals.
Several Tampa Bay hospital systems have already reached out to “Tampa Ready” requesting over ten thousand face shields, and the surge has not even hit Tampa yet. Currently, the team is printing several hundred units per day, but as time goes by, they are trying new 3D design elements and making their processes more efficient. As you can imagine, the 3D printers need repairs, materials are consumed constantly, and there are other supplies that are needed to fuel this community cause.
As news spread of the dire shortage of medical supplies throughout the country, Lorri feared Tampa would soon be in the same position. She came across the idea of 3D printing medical masks, an approach that is springing up across the country to help decentralize and supplement the production of medical supplies from strained manufacturers.
To garner support and funding for printing supplies, Lorri launched a GoFundMe page, catching the attention of Tim Keeports, the President of the Old Seminole Heights Neighborhood Association (OSHNA). Keeports quickly looped in Michael R. Guinn, an OSHNA Board Member, and also a Biomedical Engineer and an Acquisition Program Manager for the U.S. Department of Defense, who is a known subject matter expert in 3D printing.
In a matter of hours, Michael was able to offer fourteen 3D printers, and Pastor Bruce Moore of Christ Fellowship Church Tampa offered to provide lab space for the printers, assembly effort, and future volunteers. The community collaboration is named “Tampa Ready”, which has a closed Facebook group that those looking for more information can request to join (https://www.facebook.com/groups/MRG3D ). For those looking to volunteer, go to https://timecounts.org/tampa-ready-3d
The four–person team held one planning meeting before rapidly moving to installation, beta-testing prototypes, and is now in full production after only two days. Within 3 days from inception, the team had their products utilized by medical professionals in the community. The team has been working tirelessly and are now ready to receive a small number of properly screened volunteers. Volunteers will be spaced apart for social distancing and will assist with the 24/7 production, packaging, and delivery of the much-needed face shields for Tampa’s medical community. While this is not the most cost effective way to manufacture these masks, with the economy’s production and logistical system being compromised, local manufacturing must be used to meet the needs of our medical professionals.
Several Tampa Bay hospital systems have already reached out to “Tampa Ready” requesting over ten thousand face shields, and the surge has not even hit Tampa yet. Currently, the team is printing several hundred units per day, but as time goes by, they are trying new 3D design elements and making their processes more efficient. As you can imagine, the 3D printers need repairs, materials are consumed constantly, and there are other supplies that are needed to fuel this community cause.
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