IIT Dharwad prepares face shields for healthcare personnel

Apr 4, 2020, 05:30 IST

A team of ten IIT Dharwad professors has prepared the face shields for the use of staff at Karnataka Institute of Medical Sciences in Hubballi

A team of ten IIT Dharwad professors has prepared the face shields for the use of staff at Karnataka Institute...Read More

Dharwad: In addition to the underlying difficulties of tracing people who have come in direct contact with Covid-19 infected patients and ensuring adequate supply of essential commodities to the underprivileged, the government has been confronted with another huge problem: Scarcity of protective gear for citizens and healthcare personnel alike. Although various private organisations and NGOs have come forward to supply masks, the shortage remains acute. Teachers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Dharwad have decided to leverage their expertise by preparing masks that they wish to supply to healthcare personnel.
The teachers, with the assistance of volunteers from Dharwad, have thus far made 500 face shields. The protective gear has been prepared with guidance, and in adherence to the prescription of doctors from the Karnataka Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS), Hubballi.
The shortage of sufficient protective gear at KIMS was thrown into stark relief with a perceptible spurt in the number of patients displaying symptoms of Covid-19 visiting the state-run hospital. KIMS brought this to the notice of IIT Dharwad, following which the latter offered to help the hospital tide over the crisis by supplying face shields.
A ten-teacher team from IIT used the 3D printing technology and has prepared eight types of face shields, all of which have been designed in accordance with the norms prescribed by World Health Organisation (WHO). Samples of eight shields were sent to KIMS for examination, of which the doctors approved one. Five days after they received approval, teachers at IIT prepared 500 shields. The ease with which they can be worn is the USP of the masks.
Finding raw material to prepare the masks was the biggest challenge that the teachers at IIT faced, but local volunteers helped them get their hands on it. The effectiveness of the masks at KIMS is receiving demand for shields from Kalaburagi, Belagavi and other neighbouring districts, confirmed Professor Surya Prakash in the department of mechanical engineering at IIT Dharwad.
Prof MA Somashekar, while admitting to demand for their shields from neighbouring districts, expressed helplessness to fulfil them owing to non-availability of raw material. “Those in need of masks can contact us at pro@iitdh.ac.in, and we will teach those who are interested how to prepare the masks,” he added.
In addition to Suryaprakash and Somashekar, the team comprised Amar Gaonkar, Samarth Kedar, Satish, Ramachandran, Anand, Shrikant and volunteers from Rashtrothhana Vidya Kendra. The masks were prepared under the watchful eyes of Prof Surdeep Das of IIT Guwahati.