Subsea Innovation and Tekmar Energy, which specialise in bespoke equipment and subsea protection systems for the global offshore energy sectors, have joined forces to manufacture personal protection equipment (PPE) for NHS workers in the north east of England.
Like many organisations across the UK, Subsea Innovation and Tekmar Energy have responded to the coronavirus pandemic and have begun manufacturing protective face shields for frontline NHS workers at their respective facilities in Darlington and Newton Aycliffe.
Last week, Subsea Innovation designed, prototyped and began manufacturing the protective face shields using their engineering expertise and 3D printing technology.
Recognising the limitations of using 3D printers to produce the face shields in quantity, the team developed a design that can be cast in polyurethane and manufactured in greater numbers with sister company Tekmar Energy.
Supply chain partners Arthur Jackson & Co and Maddisons machined bespoke aluminium moulds within a 24-hour period at the end of last week.
This allowed Subsea Innovation and Tekmar Energy to set up production lines over the weekend and start producing key components alongside ongoing production activities for their offshore energy clients.
Subsea Innovation and Tekmar Energy are now producing between 150 and 200 protective face shields a day and will distribute them at no cost to local NHS trusts.
Tekmar Group chief executive said: ‘We are fortunate that we have the capability to expand our operations and produce protective face shields for the NHS during this period of unprecedented demand.”