From Building Tough 4×4s, To 3d Printing Pandemic Shields
Popular Mechanics South Africa|July/August 2020
On any given day in the English town of Gaydon, you might drive past the Jaguar Land Rover Centre just west of the small village, where staff are hard at work experimenting on the latest automotive innovations for the British manufacturer.
Luke Folb
From Building Tough 4×4s, To 3d Printing Pandemic Shields

However, back in April, the company turned over its prototype build operations and, utilising its CAD design expertise, commenced production on 3D printed protective visors for key workers. Jaguar Land Rover made the decision to shift focus away from vehicles to help answer the British government’s call for more vital equipment to fight the COVID-19 strain of the coronavirus.

The team designed the only reusable National Health Service (NHS)-approved visor of its kind. It was developed as part of a collaboration between a team of healthcare professionals from the NHS and Jaguar Land Rover personnel. The visors are printed at the Advanced Product Creation Centre in Gaydon, home to one of the most advanced 3D-printing facilities in Europe.

The carmaker’s decision to print the protective visors was made to help mitigate the national shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) for NHS staff. Workers on the front line of the fight against COVID-19 have suffered injury from wearing uncomfortable equipment for long hours.

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