Would you like to help as a MAKER? Sign up here:
Sign up (only once) using this form:
Once you've signed up, we will contact you to give you access to the overview of (anonymized) requests and shortages we are currently helping to remedy. That way, you can see which requests are near you and choose which ones you want to help fulfill.
If you like, we will also gladly invite you to our MAKERS community on our MAKERS4ALL Discord Server!
The step-by-step plan below is specifically intended for helping as a MAKER of COVID-related protective equipment:
1) Sign up
Sign up (only once) using this form:
Once you've signed up, your Regional coordinator will contact you, to give you access to the overview of (anonymized) requests. That way, you can see which requests are near you and choose which ones you want to help fulfill.
2) Start making
What can I make? Where do I find all infomation? What do I have to adhere to?
- Read the Hygiene Guideline below and work according to the way described.
- While 3D-printing, always make sure you are in a well ventilated area!
- Make sure you have the required materials. Read the information about these Materials (and filament compensation via our central purchasing). Print only PLA, PLA+, PET or PETG!! (see '3D-Printing' for an explanation)
- The files & instructions for all items below, can be found at our MAKERS4ALL Thingiverse page. There you will always find the latest versions of our designs.
- MAKERS4ALL Face-Shield (Current versions are V14 and V15.) Instructions for the sheet can also be found on Thingiverse.
- MAKERS4ALL Earsaver Clip (We ask you to 3D-print the new 'thin' model. The 'broad' model is faster to laser cut.)
- MAKERS4ALL Spacer Clip (Beware, we make these in 3 sizes. The requester chooses which size fits their mask.)
- Quality is álways more important then Quantity, even though we are sometimes printing for people in 'dire need'!! We get that you would like to help as much and as fast as possilbe, but please print calm and precise and remove blobs (on the inside of the rim) and/or stringing.
- Advice: most of us print Face-Shields during the day and start a bed full of Clips late in the evening, to print during the night.
3) Tell us what you made, prepare, packaging
What is a good way to clean and package the items? Where can I register what/how many items I have made?
- Read the Hygiene Guideline below to see how you can properly (keep)clean and deliver the items you have made.
- Did you make Face-Shields?: Prepare the sheets, by cutting of the corners (see the file on Thingiverse) and punch the holes. You can use a standard 4-hole-punch, or use a 2-hole-punch twice, at position '8:8:8'.
- Package your items according to the Packaging instruction below.
- For the MAKERS4ALL Face-Shield, be aware (this is essential!) : do NOT assemble them, but keep the sheet and frame separate as a flat package.. That way you assure minimal handling and it will be as compact as possible. Next to that, assembled Face-Shields officially fall in a different (legal) category.
- Print het productvel uit (van de producten die zijn aangevraagd):
en voeg het bij de items (Niet ín het zakje, maar erbij/erop geplakt)
- Fill out the form:
- Via this form you can specify per batch what / how much you have made of which article. This way we can match supply and demand. The regional coordinators see the information coming in from the forms in real-time and thus have an overview of the stock. Moreover, it is a way of estimating how much filament you use, so that we can compensate you as much as possible with sponsored filament.
4) ....to the destination!
Who do we make protective equipment for? How and where can I deliver them?
- Who can I help with it? Most DIY products are suitable for the health/care providers in your area such as: community nurses, general practitioners, informal carers, elderly care, (mentally) and handicapped care, or contact professions like police or yes ... even the stock fillers in your supermarket. We focus our help especially on those who are not supplied (yet) by other channels.
- If you already know someone who you can make happy with this protective equipment, that's great! ALWAYS ask them to also fill out the form on the REQUESTERS page. In this form we ask them to officially agree with a 'Disclaimer of Liability' (shown at the bottom of that same page). Providing the paper version of this disclaimer afterwards does not count. If they do not submit the application themselves via this site, you could be held liable if something should go wrong! We want to protect all MAKERS against this, by always having the requests submitted via the site. In the application form they can indicate that you are already helping them, because that's fine! You can also handle the request, great! Make sure your regional coordinator knows that you have already taken up that request, so that he/she no longer has to look for a match!
- After you sign up as MAKERS4ALL MAKER, you will get access to your regional Trello board. It contains all requests that come in with the city name. You can then choose which request you want to (help) fulfill. For the request that you pick up, you will receive the contact details of your region coordinator.
Hygiene guideline for printing and delivery of Face masks / Face-Shields (and other items)
When drawing up these guidelines, we start from the purpose of the masks and the guidelines of the RIVM. The masks are used to protect the professional's face from contamination by coughing, breathing or sneezing. Thus, the patient is the potential source of infection and not the professional.
Who are the professionals we make the Face Masks for?
The professionals are:
- Home Care workers
- Workers in general practice
- Doctors
- Assistants
- Nurses
- Workers in health care facilities
According to RIVM there are 3 types of cleaning of nursing supplies:
- Wet wash with soapy water / soap that removes dirt and microorganisms.
- Disinfection when the object is contaminated with blood or blood admixture.
- Sterilization or complete release of germs, necessary when there is wound contact (sterile dressings), surgery or other invasive technique is used.
In this case, the Face-Shields (as well as the Earsaver Clips and Spacer Clips) can be cleaned normally and do not need to be delivered sterile or disinfected.
Additionally, the RIVM says that Face-Shields should be 70% cleanable with alcohol (in case the mask is used on a coughing or highly contagious patient).
Although the chance that you transmit an infection is very small, we also want to prevent you from transmitting an infection by means of an item you make. The chance is small when we assume that you will not print when you are infected and because the virus has hardly spread through objects until now.
Guidelines for the various parts:
The Face-Shield consists of the 3D printed frame, a transparent sheet and rubber bands. We also have the Earsaver- and Spacer Clips.
Let's start with the 3D-printed parts
(like the frame for the Face-Shield or other prints, like the Earsaver- and Spacer Clips)
As long as your print is still on your print bed, the print is sterile (printed with a temperature above 190 degrees). That is a higher level of hygiene than necessary, but I can imagine that you will find that a safe feeling.
We can imagine you want to prevent contaminating your nice 3D-print.
This can be done in several ways:
- Release the print from the print bed, with non-sterile disposable gloves and place in the envelope / plastic bag. Since gloves can be better used for other purposes in this crisis, you have to ask yourself whether this is the right way.
- Wash your hands with soap and water or hand wash gel according to WHO protocol, as all medical workers are taught. After that you can take your print gently, because all microorganisms have then been removed. See the handwashing protocol at the end of this document.
- If you are unsure whether your hands are or were clean, you can wash your print in soapy water or clean it with 70% alcohol. You don't make the print sterile, but all microorganisms are killed and that's what it's all about.
- You can also ask the recipient if they want to wash the Face-Shield, Earsaver- and Spacer Clips according to their own guidelines, before use.
When washing your 3D-print, pay attention to the following:
- Please note that PLA cannot withstand high temperatures and becomes limp in warm water. PET-G can withstand high temperatures.
- Preferably do not use chlorine, it's not necessary.
- Dry them and wrap them separately in an envelope or plastic bag for delivery.
OTHER PARTS: THE SHEETS AND THE RUBBER BANDS
The sheets and the rubber bands are microorganism free as long as they are in the packaging and therefore do not need to be washed before delivery, provided you wrap it in an envelope or plastic bag with clean hands and do not sneeze or cough during packaging. The sheets can also be cleaned with household soapy water or 70% alcohol.
Why no UV-C in our guidelines?
There is a lot of talk about UV-C cleaning of the complete masks before delivery. Besides being expensive, complex and dangerous, this does not add value to the above procedure.
Face-Shields and mouth masks
In most cases it is recommended to combine the Face-Shields with mouth masks during use. However, that depends on the situation and the employer's guidelines and is the responsibility of the professional him/herself.
Note: The Earsaver- and Spacer Clips are treated the same way as the frames for the Face-Shields.
Teacher Hygiene & Infection Prevention.
WHO protocol: https://www.who.int/gpsc/clean_hands_protection/
Ordering cheaper/sponsored materials through MAKERS4ALL:
As MAKERS4ALL, we purchase filament and sheets centrally (and in bulk) from the financial contributions we receive from donors. We get special discounts (and sometimes free materials too) from manufacturers who want to support our initiative! This allows us to make as many items as possible with donated money / material.
Based on the numbers of registered printed items, we can estimate how much filament and power a MAKER has already used. This is compensated with sponsored filament.
Makers affiliated with MAKERS4ALL can access a MAKERS4ALL order form through their region coordinator to request a sponsored amount of filament.
The sheets are provided through the regional coordinators. Ask your region coordinator.
Necessary Materials
FILAMENT
PLA, PLA+, PET and PET-G (see the ‘3D-printing’ tab)
Print the colors you have available! It does not matter. Cheerful colors can have a nice effect. If necessary, use up colors that you don't use much! 🙂 (do check first if your filament is not too old and dry it if necessary)
SHEETS
Transparent sheets: Sheets with a thickness of 100 to 300 microns are suitable for making the Face shields. You can think of endpapers, overhead sheets and crystal-clear 'cover-sheets'.
Overhead sheets for inkjet printers are NOT suitable. These have an adhesive layer for the ink, so that they are not transparent enough.
RUBBER BANDS
You can use everything for the rubber bands: from simple rubber bands, hair bands to button elastic.
These cheap rubber bands for example, sold by the 'Action' stores, are fine!
BAGS TO PUT THE ITEMS IN
For packaging the Frames of the Face-Shields (per 10 pieces), you can, for example, use these Freezer Bags from AH, with zip closure (25 × 32 cm, larger than A4).
They are also suitable to wrap the sheets and the assembly instructions.
Choice of Filament
Only PLA, PLA +, PETG and PET are suitable for the protective equipment we print!
Other materials are not allowed for the following reasons:
- Not all materials are equally resistant to the disinfectants (alcohols) that are used in practice. It can no longer be seen by users (or others) from which material it is made. We must therefore be able to trust, also in the unambiguous cleaning advice, that it can only be one of the above-mentioned variants (PLA, PLA +, PET or PETG).
- For some materials, toxic fumes are released during printing (including ABS). Since most MAKERS are printing in a home setting (now many hours in a row), we find this absolutely unjustified. We do not want to endanger the health of the Makers and their families in any way.
- There is not enough time to find out for all materials whether they are strong and safe enough to use. Especially with any variations in print quality. Some materials are more difficult to print and require more experience from the Maker.
- We want to deliver the best possible product and it would be a shame if we got back problems from the field later on.
Printer settings (MAKERS4ALL Face-Shield, Clip for mouth mask)
- Rafts: No
- Supports: No
- Infill: minimal 20%
- Filament_material: PLA, PLA +, PETG and PET. DO NOT use any other materials. Other materials can lead to unsafe usage situations.
- Walls:
- Face shield frame: minimal 0.8 mm, Top/Bottom layers: minimal 0.8 mm,
- Clip for mouth mask: minimal 0.5 mm, Top/Bottom layers: minimal 0.5 mm.
- Nozzle: 0.4 – 0.8 mm
- Layer thickness: Layer thickness depends on the nozzle size. As a rough rule you can say that the maximum layer thickness can be 80% of your nozzle size, but this depends on more things, so you will have to test it yourself, how thick you can go to still get a neat print result to have. It is advisable to print with the thickest possible layers, so that you have as few spaces in your product as possible where dirt can accumulate.
Tips
While 3D-printing, always make sure you are in a well ventilated area!
Fit as many items as possible on your print bed at the same time. On our Thingiverse Page, you will find files for printing 2 Face-Shield frames at the same time (for the 3 most common print bed sizes). It can also be smart to, for example, place some clips between the Face-Shield frame to make longer prints to make better use of the nights. You can also print a print bed full with the new (narrow) version of the Clip at night. Many of them fit on the print bed at the same time!
Need help?
If you have printing problems and you are not yet registered, you can indicate in the MAKERS- Make it happen! ”Registration form (at the top of this page) that you want to participate in the MAKERS4ALL Community Discord. We help each other there. There is a lot of printer expertise available 🙂 If you are already registered, but did not choose Discord at the time, ask your region coordinator for an invitation.
- Important: Always observe the Hygiene Guidelines! (Both during Making and Packaging)
Packaging the Face-Shields
- Do not assemble the Face shield, but pack frame and sheets unassembled and bundle it into a flat package.
- To make it easier for those who want to distribute the larger requests, we also ask that you always pack everything in 10 pieces for the frames and 25 pieces for the clips, as described further below. For requests of less than 10 or 25 pieces you pack only what is needed, of course.
Packaging the Frames
The frames must be packed per 10 pieces in a bag (eg a freezer bag 24x32cm) together with 10 rubber bands.
Packaging the Sheets
The sheets must be packed in a separate bag, then the frames, to avoid scratches and damage to the sheets. Make sure the sheets are perforated with a 4-hole-punch or twice with a 2-hole-punch (8:8:8 setting) and the corners trimmed (see the pdf on Thingiverse for instructions).
The sheets should be packaged 10 at a time.
Take a bag (eg a pedal bin bag or a A4 freezer bag) and a stack of perforated sheets, put them in a bag and tie it closed. For requests of less than 10 pieces you will have to pack only the requested amount of course.
Packaging the Earsaver Clips
The Earsaver Clips must be packed per 25 pieces. It is handy to put a rubber band around it and then put it in a bag, which you can tie up. For requests of less than 25 pieces, you will have to pack only the requested number, of course.
Packaging the Spacer Clips
The Spacer Clips must be packed per 25 pieces. It is handy to put a rubber band around it and then put it in a bag, which you can tie up. For requests of less than 25 pieces, you will have to pack only the requested number, of course.
