TEN Magazine April 2020 TEN Magazine April 2020 | Page 26

LASERS
UK businesses step up to the plate to
fight Covid-19
Using technology
for the greater good
The ongoing Coronavirus
pandemic has resulted in
a shortage of numerous
products affecting all walks
of life, with PPE for frontline
workers being one of the
main areas affected. To help
combat this shortage, many
businesses are lending
their hand to support the
production of additional
PPE for frontline workers
using their in-house
production facilities.
Highly versatile laser cutting machines have
become an essential piece of equipment for
businesses operating in a range of industries;
thanks to the variety of materials that laser
cutters can process along with fast processing
times and efficient workflows, many
businesses which use laser cutters as part
of their everyday work have been able to
quickly adapt to the impacts of the Covid-
pandemic and turn their attention to leading
the production of PPE. For many companies
in the UK, the fast processing speeds of their
laser systems have allowed large quantities
of face shields, visors and other PPE to be
produced, very often at no profit, in minimal
time for community projects, care homes and
local NHS trusts, to name a few.
The most common materials used in the
production of PPE are clear acrylics and
plastics such as PET which are laser cut and
then manually assembled. By laser cutting
these materials, face shields, visors and
surrounds for shop counters can be quickly
and easily produced to meet the guidelines
laid out by the UK government. Trotec, a
market-leading supplier of laser cutting,
engraving and marking machines has
created a design file for face shields to help
businesses looking to contribute PPE to the
frontlines, allowing the whole piece to be cut
from a single sheet of material, effortlessly
optimising production.
Taking the fight
pan-industry
It’s not just the types of businesses you might
expect who have switched their focus in
support of PPE production. Companies from
a wide range of industries including acrylic
fabrication, personalised gifts, universities,
schools and even paper processing firms
have stepped up to offer their support to the
fight against Covid-19 using their laser
cutters. This has been possible due to the
versatility that
the laser cutter
provides, it’s very
easy to switch
production to a
new material, even
if it has never been
used on the
machine before.
Trotec customer,
Patternise, are
more familiar with
creating beautifully
intricate laser cut
paper displays
which are often
used for events
and high street
shop windows.
Rob Payne, business owner said: “We
immediately accepted the challenge to
make visors for key frontline health workers,
primarily manufacturing on our high-speed
Trotec GS1000 laser cutting machine.
We were able to supply 1600 visors within
an extremely aggressive timeframe, and
thanks to the support of our suppliers,
we were able to supply all visors at no
charge to those in desperate need.”
CONTINUED ON PAGE 28
26
APRIL 2020
The Magazine for the
Awards & Imaging Industry
TROPHIES AWARDS ENGRAVING DOMING PERSONALISATION SUBLIMATION BESPOKE EMBROIDERY PRINTING IMAGING LASER
twitter / facebook / instagram: @trophexlive