The Business Exchange Bath & Somerset Issue 17: Autumn 2020 | Page 16

GOING GREEN
FOLDALL: A LOCKDOWN SUCCESS STORY
At the height of the Covid-19 outbreak in March, former Dyson
engineer, Edward Chudleigh and a small group of friends decided
to harness their expertise and setup Foldall. The not-for-profit
company began manufacturing face masks to address the urgent
need for Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) throughout the
NHS. During the peak they produced over 80,000 shields in Bath.
We spoke to Edward, to find out more...
How did the Foldall project begin?
When Covid-19 started to become serious in
China, I realised that there might be a very
big possibility of it spreading to Europe. I
telephoned friends of mine who are doctors
and front-line workers and they indicated to
me there was a huge risk of them not having
enough PPE if the virus spread to the UK. It
was at this point that I started designing a
basic face shield that could be made using
readily available materials off the shelf.
How did you get started?
I have a friend who contacted St Michael’s
Without Church in Bath as we needed extra
space. We had already moved production
three times in around two weeks, and we
were getting huge orders in. We set up a
volunteer’s network where people could
sign up online and register the days that
they wanted to come and help. We had
an amazing response with 360 volunteers
signed up. St Michael’s Without was a vital
step to helping us make the quantities that
were required by the NHS and other frontline
workers. We also were very thankful to
have the support of King Edward’s School.
When the church space was unavailable, we
set up shop in their sports hall. I would like
to say a big thank you to everyone who made
the project such a success, it took a lot of
time, co-ordination and effort.
How was Foldall funded?
The project was initially self-funded, with
generous donations from the public and
support from local businesses.
What were the main challenges in
producing the masks?
The main challenge was working with a
virus that wasn’t completely understood and
getting feedback from physically exhausted
workers. It wasn’t helped that the whole
country was in lockdown and travelling
around to meet suppliers was nearly
impossible. There were so many constraints
just outside let alone trying to develop a
product to help combat a virus. It felt like a
war. The streets were dead, as were most of
the factories and suppliers.
How did you ensure the masks
complied with government
guidelines for PPE?
We eventually ended up with a model (I think
the 14th version) that was getting excellent
feedback from hospitals and could be made
quickly by our robots and volunteer assembly
team. We were in touch with BSI (British
Standards Institute) and it was really at this
time we needed to get it certified to allow
it to continue to go out to hospitals. Prior
to this the government simply asked any
manufacturer to help out as there was such a
shortage, but they also said that you needed
to be in the process of getting your product
certified. We sent our products to the BSI for
independent testing and they all passed.
We hear Foldall has inspired a
personal project to trial a 100%
recyclable faceshield - how is
this going?
This is still very much in development and
is part of a project that I was working on
before Covid-19 called Genesis2. Genesis2
is a machine that can recycle any type of
plastic ever made and turns it directly into a
product using essentially one machine. It’s
the first of its kind. I realised that, with all the
PPE being manufactured, there is going to
be an enormous amount of landfill when the
pandemic passes.
It would be great to have waste PPE that
could be recycled into other products and
Genesis2 also sterilises the material. We did
develop reusable face visors but even these
have a certain life span. The products that
Genesis2 makes are themselves ‘closedloop’
meaning they will never end up in landfill.
What are the challenges in
making a face shield recyclable?
As with any recyclable product, the
challenges are ensuring the materials
or components can be easily separated
into their common groups for recycling or
ensuring that they are made from one type
of material. My latest design takes the latter
approach being made from just one material.
Genesis2’s key advantage is that it does not
require plastics or polymers to be separated.
Do you think that the ‘great
pause’ created by the pandemic
is encouraging designers and
manufacturers to think even
more green?
I hope that the lessons learned during the
pandemic will be taken on board, both in
behavioural aspects of how people adapted
and also in the way that nature was able to
take over for a bit. Now more than ever there
should be greater emphasis on using the
resources that we have and being clearer
as to how we can be lean in our use of
materials.
To see the progression of the Genesis2,
follow Ed on Instagram @EdwardChudleigh.
For more info:
www.foldall.co.uk
@foldalluk
16 www.tbebathandsomerset.co.uk