Contribute as AM company to the fight against COVID-19
The healthcare sector is currently facing unseen challenges. The COVID-19 outbreak is causing shortages of medical equipment and devices such as medical masks, valves or ventilators. This is not only the case in hospitals, but also for care providers. Everyone understands the severity of the crisis, including the 3D printing sector. The AM companies are therefore joining forces in all kinds of initiatives to help in the fight against the coronavirus. Think, for instance, of actions concerning the printing of face masks or ventilator parts. So supply is available; but what about demand? How do all these initiatives reach the right institutions? Umbrella associations Flam3D, CECIMO and MGA are, at different levels, actively linking supply and demand.
As a network organisation for 3D printing in Flanders and the Netherlands, Flam3D asked its members, but also non-members, to indicate whether they can use all or part of their printer capacity for printing all kinds of things that are or will be in short supply. Through their network, Flam3D was able to identify what 3D printing capacity is currently available in the Netherlands and Flanders. The organisation maintains national contacts with healthcare institutions, governments and crisis centres. In this way, Flam3D can quickly link supply and demand when needed and distribute any national “assignments” in the Netherlands and Belgium. | If necessary, Flam3D can quickly link supply and demand and distribute any national “assignments” in the Netherlands and Belgium. If you also have printing capacity or are working on an initiative, please feel free to contact the organisation. | |
| Would you also like to contribute on an European level? CECIMO, MGA or VLAIO, among others, are actively working on this. | ||
CECIMO, the European umbrella association for the tooling and machinery industry, has launched an invitation to all AM companies to assist in the production of equipment that hospitals are missing due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The call is launched at an European level and, addressed to European 3D printing companies for assistance to all hospitals in Europe. | More info about this call at European level and a participation link can be found here. | |
MGA, an international network for Additive Manufacturing, also calls on AM companies to help in the fight against the coronavirus on a European level. Via an overview, the organisation wants to help manufacturers to quickly identify potential partners for different applications. To this end, the organisation invites AM companies to fill in the technologies, materials and ideas that they have available in this table. A similar form is available for hospitals and people in need of solutions. In this way, the organisation can match supply and demand more efficiently. | Register here the technologies, materials and ideas that your company can make available. | |
VLAIO, the Flemish Agency for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, also launches a call at the European level. All companies that have production capacity to produce necessary equipment or other personal protective devices can report to the organisation. VLAIO will collect and share on an European scale the data of companies that can help with this. More information on the call can be found here. Registration is possible until the 29th of March. | Fill in your details via this form until March 29th. Please also indicate which PPE and/or medical equipment your company can produce, in what period of time and in what quantity. | |