The lockdown has not been able to deter individuals who want to take initiative. One such individual is a Grade 11 learner at Greenside High School.
Griffin Trace heeded the call to print personal protective equipment (PPE) in the form of face shield headbands by 3D. He heard about the initiative when a non-profit community, 3DPSA, reached out and asked volunteers with 3D printers to help out.
3DPSA comprises of makers who supply their services and skills to print facial shields to equip frontline medical workers in the fight against Covid-19. Griffin, who is among many other volunteers in this initiative, said, “I get enjoyment out of 3D printing things, I saw this project as a way to help out my community and the people who are saving lives and keeping the country alive.” He added that at first, he made about 50 prints from his own supply of material which is called filament. When he began to run out of supplies however, 3DPSA supplied the material.
Explaining the technical process, Griffin said the design used by 3DPSA uses about 25 to 30g and takes just over two hours to print, so he can normally get around 10 made per day. When Griffin is done with the final product, 3DPSA does a collection run. Again, volunteers are needed for this part of the initiative and luckily for Griffin, Parkview resident Ivor Rimmer came to the rescue.
Rimmer is a volunteer from the Off-Road Rescue Unit of the Four Wheel Drive Club of Southern Africa.”We have permits to drive around, so we started to go around and collect the headbands. We then sterilise and sanitise them before delivering to hospitals and other departments who need them,” Rimmer explained. Griffin has made 202 headbands so far, and 180 of those have been collected.
Griffin said, “I am motivated to keep doing this, as it is a way for me to help my community and the people who are putting their lives at risk to protect us. I have the resources and knowledge to help this initiative, and I see it as a way to do my part in these weird and difficult times.”
Details: Frontline workers and organisations can go onto www.southafricafightingcovid.com and make a request for the finished headbands.
Share your initiatives in the fight against Covid-29 by email to naidines@caxton.co.za
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