The COVID-19 virus has impacted nearly every industry’s pandemic response in some way or another. Plastic fabrication is no exception. However, instead of stalling operations or slowing production, plastic fabrication manufacturers have been able to stay competitive by responding quickly and developing a variety of useful and necessary products that are tailored to the needs of healthcare professionals and essential businesses and organizations.
These new innovations have not only helped the industry remain relevant during a difficult time, but they’re also helping those on the front lines of the pandemic response improve safety conditions where they’re needed most. Here’s a bit more about how plastic manufacturers have responded to the pandemic and how that quick response is impacting a wide array of businesses and organizations.
Plastic Fabrication Manufacturer Capabilities
Plastic fabrication manufacturers have the ability to work with a variety of materials and customize them to meet the specific needs of customers. From impact resistant polycarbonate to crystal clear acrylic, fabricators have access to materials that fit nearly every need that customers may encounter as they seek out protective systems and customizable solutions for their operations.
Once the right options are identified, fabricators can then customize those raw materials using high quality and reliable equipment. Whether you need CNC routing or thermoforming solutions, manufacturers can shape products so that they fit seamlessly with your operations and location.
Additionally, plastic fabrication manufacturers are able to act quickly to change products or customize specific materials when needed. During a pandemic, solutions that may impact safety and sanitization are needed right away. So it’s necessary for the companies that are developing and producing those solutions to have the materials, equipment, knowledge, and distribution capabilities in place to deploy systems in a timely fashion.
How This Impacts the Current Pandemic Response
So how have these capabilities impacted the current COVID-19 pandemic response? Perhaps the most impactful and important product developed in recent weeks are plastic face shields to help medical professionals working on the front lines. These products are especially important due to the shortage of personal protective equipment available to healthcare professionals across the country. Disposable plastic face shields provide a low-cost solution that can be mass produced to provide extra safety protection for those working tirelessly to combat COVID-19. These disposable masks consist of a single piece of material that can be shipped flat, allowing hospitals to rapidly distribute these products to staff members so they can deploy them whenever necessary. Once the masks arrive, healthcare professionals can quickly and easily fold them into their intended three dimensional form and then adjust them to fit their face to provide maximum protection.
Since plastic fabrication manufacturers already have access to a variety of high quality plastics and customization equipment, they’ve been able to act quickly to meet the increased demands of hospitals and healthcare workers across the country. Though other types of PPE are still necessary and beneficial, plastics providers have demonstrated how they’re up to the challenge of providing fast and convenient solutions when they’re needed most.
And face shields aren’t the only products that plastic fabrication manufacturers have been working hard to develop and produce over the past few weeks and months. Intubation boxes provide another solution for medical facilities that can help to protect front-line workers during the crisis. These products consist of a crystal-clear plastic barrier that is impact and scratch resistant and easy to clean and sanitize. It is also portable, so hospital workers can easily deploy these solutions whenever extra protection is needed.
For healthcare centers and essential businesses that still need to interact with customers, sneeze guards provide a clear shield that separates workers from members of the public. While available in custom sizes, they also come in a standard size of 24” wide x 32” tall and are lightweight, impact resistant, easy to clean. There are a variety of different installation models available so you can choose the one that best fits with your operations and needs, and custom models are even available upon request. Additionally, these solutions can be installed very quickly to provide necessary and beneficial safety precautions right away.
Additionally, privacy partitions and social distancing graphics can improve safety conditions for customers or members of the public by providing easy barriers and guidelines to help people maintain physical separation when necessary. More specifically, privacy partitions consist of lightweight, rigid, durable structures that are easy to install using aluminum frame systems. They’re also easy to clean and opaque to provide privacy for those inside. Social distancing graphics are customizable, printed graphics that help to promote social distancing in various facilities and businesses. They’re printed on a non slip material that easily sticks to the floor with adhesive to provide guidance to customers or visitors about where to stand for optimum safety. They can be produced with a standard design or with custom branding elements. These are especially ideal for use in checkout lanes or places where customers would normally queue or stand in close proximity while waiting for service. These materials can also be used to close off tables or parts of a retail location that has been deemed non-essential or as a method for directing customers to face away from one another when they may be in narrow environments together.
If you’re looking for face shields or any other plastic materials to promote social distancing or safety conditions at your location, contact Polymershapes for a quick quote. A leading plastic fabrication manufacturer for clients throughout the Midwest and East Coast, we have access to a huge variety of plastic materials like acrylic, polycarbonate, PVC, nylon, and ABS. We also have the equipment necessary to customize products to your specific needs, and our Dayton fabrication center is ISO 9001 certified and ITAR compliant. Whether you need face shields or intubation boxes for healthcare centers or sneeze guards for essential business operations, reach out to our team and we’ll provide you with a fast quote so you can optimize protection for your employees and customers.