Students fire up 3D printers to produce PPE

WASHINGTON — It started in late March with a self-professed high school “news junkie” and a lone 3D printer.

Georgetown Day School senior Jonah Docter-Loeb was transfixed by television footage of the “suffering on such a large scale” caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

After learning that supplies of protective medical gear were being depleted, Docter-Loeb tapped into the online community of “makers” — 3D printer enthusiasts — and found an opensource design for a welder’s mask-style face shield he could print at home.

In less than a month, that idea has mushroomed into Print to Protect, a network of around 100 3D printers, most in individual homes, producing face shields for distribution to Washingtonarea hospitals. The group says it has printed 3,000 shields so far with a goal of completing 10,000 in April.

“For a lot of us, it can be overwhelming what’s happening,” said Emily Scarrow, a junior at the private school and part of a collective of students running the project. She said working on the campaign helped her deal with the feelings of “helplessness and isolation” of the ongoing stay-at-home orders.

The supplies are much needed as Washington and the larger capital region of southern Maryland and northern Virginia braces for a looming surge.

Twice a week, volunteer drivers gather the printed materials from people’s homes. To maintain social distancing and reduce personal interactions, residents leave the newly printed parts in a sealed bag or box on their porches.

The parts are delivered to Eaton DC, a communal workspace downtown that’s serving as a distribution hub. There, more volunteers assemble the two basic components — a plastic headband and a clear sheet of flexible plastic that hangs in front of the face.

JACQUELYN MARTIN/AP Georgetown Day School junior Will Olsen places bags holding components of medical face shields into a vehicle.