When they saw an appeal on LinkedIn for help to speed up the manufacture of an open source visor headband design, the team at Canterbury Tools in Walsall stepped in to help.
Working in partnership, Canterbury Tools, APS and Bolyer Engineering have produced approximately 15,000 visors so far, at a rate of around 250 per hour. These are being supplied into hospitals, GP surgeries and care homes through Kirby Dowler and the WF Education Trust.
The headbands are made from donated material, with the tooling and manufacturing completed at the companies' own cost. The partnership are now working to increase capacity and hope to produce 40,000 in total.
It's a change from their usual work manufacturing parts for automotive companies, but the team are proud to do their part. "We hope we can make a small difference to the healthcare workers as they fight bravely on our behalf to save lives," said David Field, Director of Canterbury Tools.
Canterbury Tools have shared their offer on the WMCA Covid-19 Support site to reach groups across the region. They are also launching a CanterPPE website to enable care homes and key workers to access the supply direct.