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JCRMRG’s 3D Health Hackathon Aims for Sustainable 3D Printed PPE

As we’ve mentioned many, many times over the last few months, the 3D printing community has really stepped up in a big way to help others as our world got turned upside down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The crisis hasn’t passed either, and makers are still offering their support in any way they can.

We’ve been telling you about all of the virtual events and webinars taking place in the industry as we struggle to remain connected, including a virtual nationwide 3D Health Hackathon, hosted by the United Way-sponsored Jersey City Rapid Maker Response Group (JCRMRG) and sponsored by several industry partners, including 3DPrint.com.

This all-volunteer collective has an interesting back story. JCRMRG was just formed in April, as the result of a Reddit post regarding personal protective equipment, or PPE. The post was a call to arms for 3D printing hobbyists to organize, in order to create and deliver face shields for medical workers and first responders in New Jersey and New York.

JCRMRG volunteers delivering face shields to hospitals

“I’m creating the jersey city rapid maker response group. calling all local makers and professionals with 3dprinters, laser cutters, etc, to come volunteer remotely…together. It’s time for us to get organized and help supply our local healthcare workers more efficiently, as a group,” the post states.

“if we band together, we will be able to get much more efficient at our production and distribution, and will be able to supply larger numbers to needed places quickly, addressing local needs in a smarter way.”

Since then, the group has engaged over 50 volunteers, responsible for 3D printing 5,000 face shields. JCRMRG has since switched to injection molding, and more than 75,000 face shields have been delivered to healthcare workers all around the US. Now it’s raising the bar with the virtual hackathon, which aims to take on PPE-related wearability, sustainability, and supply chain issues.

“Our goal is to be responsible partners in the eco-system that we are currently a part of, while acting as a catalyst for innovation, and we are the only all volunteer PPE group in the country doing an event like this. We want to pay it forward, and enable our hackers to walk away with enough feedback and support to launch their own successful ventures that can continue to support the battle against COVID, and combat supply chain disruption through maker-led initiatives,” said JCRMRG’s founder Justin Handsman.

JCRMRG’s Laura Sankowich told me that as of now, 25 hackathon teams from around the country have signed up, and the event will kick off at 6 pm on July 10th with a Zoom call between the panelists and judges. Initial design ideas will be presented in one of three categories — sustainable PPE, modular solution labs, and day-to-day PPE — and then the hacking will begin.

“The Jersey City Rapid Maker Response Group is making a huge impact on a local and national level. First by providing PPE to frontline medical workers, and second by engaging people to think about how we can empower the maker movement to continue to address both COVID and future crisis related challenges. As a co-host and advisor of the event, and leader of a tech organization with more than 2,500 members, I am confident that the hackathon will have a positive, long-term impact in terms of the ideas, and potential businesses it will produce,” stated Ben Yurcisin, Founder of the Jersey City Tech Meetup, who is also serving as the event advisor.

A JCRMRG volunteer set his system to 3D print 40 face shield visors at once.

From July 11-12, teams will work on their projects, whether they’re designing PPE for daily use in schools, business, and public transportation, figuring out ways to reduce waste in the PPE production process, or developing mobile manufacturing labs that can be deployed quickly and easily in healthcare, emergent, and even educational settings.  Teams of experienced mentors will support the hackers, offering support and coaching, as well as advice on design and functionality capabilities and creating value propositions for their ideas.

“This hackathon represents the next phase in our mission to use technology for humanitarian causes. Our hackathon is bringing together the brightest minds and leaders in technology, business, and additive manufacturing to help participating teams develop solutions to address the ongoing needs surrounding supply chain disruptions in healthcare and emergent situations,” Handsman said. “We are also focused on encouraging the development of safe, sustainable solutions related to the manufacturing and use of PPE since millions of face shields, masks, and pieces of protective gear are ending up in landfills across the country after a single use.”

In addition to Handsman, there are eight other Hackathon judges:

  • Michael Burghoffer, Founder and CEO of PicoSolutions
  • Alda Leu Dennis, General Partner at early stage VC firm Initialized Capital
  • Christopher Frangione, COO of TechUnited:NJ
  • Thomas Murphy, Sr. Product Manager at Shapeways
  • Rob Rinderman, SCORE Mentor, Founder, Investor
  • Tali Rosman, General Manager and Vice President of 3D Printing, Xerox
  • Nora Toure, Founder of Women in 3D Printing
  • Dr. David Zimmerman, Stevens Venture Center, Director of Technology Commercialization, Stevens Institute of Technology

A variant of the open-source Prusa face shield, modified and produced by JCRMRG

The winning hacks will be announced on July 16th. The third place team will receive $1,500, while second place will get $2,500, and first place is $3,500. Several strategic partners and sponsors are supporting the hackathon, including 3DPrint.com, Asimov Ventures, DesignPoint, Indiegrove, PicoSolutions, Dassault Systèmes, PSE&G, PrusaPrinters, TechUnited, Stevens Venture Center, Devpost, Women in 3D Printing, and the Jersey City Tech Meetup.

Once the hackathon is over, JCRMRG plans to follow and support the teams, as well as the maker community, by connecting makers with resources and mentors, and coming up with more initiatives to use 3D printing and injection molding to make face shields for the brave men and women working on the front lines of the pandemic in the US.

JCRMRG donated 875 face shields to Zufall Health Center in New Jersey

(Source/Images: Jersey City Rapid Maker Response Group)

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Operation Namaste Making 3D Printed Molds for Prosthetic Aligners in Nepal

Last January, Certified Prosthetist-Orthotist (CPO) Jeff Erenstone, the Chief Technology Officer of Create O&P, decided to leave the company he co-founded in order to continue advancing and improving clinical and prosthetic care in the developing world.

Jeff Erenstone fitting a prosthetic liner on an amputee’s leg

In addition to treating patients in his upstate New York clinics, he has now focused all of his attention on Operation Namaste, the non-profit organization he co-founded that is working to ensure amputees around the world have easy access to comfortable prosthetic care.

According to the organization’s website, it helps “determined people achieve by providing tools and support to Orthotic and Prosthetic practitioners in Nepal and beyond.”

Operation Namaste has worked on several helpful projects, such as hosting a summit on prosthetics and orthotics, setting up Camp Namaste for Nepalese children with limb differences, helping a Paralympic hopeful play basketball, and completing the Nepal Warrior Trek, where a team of amputees and business owners traveled to the country to raise awareness and financial assistance for victims of the 2015 Nepal earthquake.

Its latest project is SILC (silicone interface liner comfort) Solutions, which is a system for fabricating silicone liners locally. In October, Operation Namaste volunteers took a trip to Kathmandu, Nepal to test out the new program, which will work to improve prosthetic care – using 3D printing – in developing countries.

“Part service trip and part trek, this trip featured a team of prosthetists, a physiotherapist, and an amputee peer counselor who toured the beautiful country of Nepal, visiting several prosthetic clinics along the way and putting on an educational summit for Nepali practitioners discussing the latest care techniques,” the website stated about the organization’s Nepal Trek 2019.

Prosthetic liners go between an amputee and their prosthesis in order to increase mobility and comfort…which is great for patients in high-income countries with either medical insurance or the money to pay for them.

SILC Solutions prosthetic liner

Erenstone said, “Without prosthetic liners, amputees would not be summiting the Himalayas, returning to active-duty military service, and competing against able-bodied athletes in Olympic sports.”

Unfortunately, these liners are not readily available, or are too expensive, for most amputees in low-income, developing countries like Nepal.

Demonstration at educational conference in Nepal

Operation Namaste’s new SILC Solutions method uses CAD-designed, 3D printed molds to create standard-sized silicone liners. Compared to typical liners, which can cost upwards of $200, the sustainable ones created by the organization will cost less than $50 to fabricate – making them far more accessible to amputees in developing countries.

Erenstone mixing silicone to make a liner in Nepal

Erenstone has firsthand experience in seeing the positive difference that a quality prosthetic liner can make in the life of an amputee, especially in places like Nepal.

“I’m really excited for this project take off in Nepal, and beyond. Our goal here was to make liners affordable, accessible, and sustainable, and I think we are achieving that,” said Erenstone.

ROMP (Range of Motion Project), a Colorado-based nonprofit organization with dovetailing goals, is partnering with Operation Namaste to help achieve the goal of improving prosthetic care all around the world.

“Gel liners are just not within reach for most people in developing countries,” said Eric Neufeld, the chair of the board at ROMP. “This has been a limiting factor in the quality of care for amputees.”

3D printed liner mold

During Operation Namaste’s recent trip to Nepal, the team of volunteers successfully tested out the new SILC Solutions program, determining that it was possible to use 3D printed molds to make lower cost prosthetics anywhere. The organization plans to finalize its SILC prosthetic liners ahead of another planned trip to Nepal in spring 2020, where volunteers will deliver necessary materials to fabricate the liners and train practitioners on the process.

Discuss this news and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts in the Facebook comments below. 

[Images: Operation Namaste]

The post Operation Namaste Making 3D Printed Molds for Prosthetic Aligners in Nepal appeared first on 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing.

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Greek Refugees Using Mass Portal 3D Printer, Donated by Materialise, to Design and Print Their Own Models

The users of the 3D printer at Habibi.works design their own models

We often hear heartwarming stories of how 3D printing is being used to make the world a better place in all sorts of ways. In 2016, German NGO Soup & Socks eV founded an intercultural fab lab, or makerspace, called Habibi.Works, which provides platforms for everyday education and empowerment to thousands of refugees, and the local community, in Katsikas, Greece.

“One of our strongest values in Habibi.works is that we work with people to find solutions to their problems,” explained Saad Abouchadi, who has been volunteering with the makerspace for a year. “It is a two-way interaction. So, people will come to us either with a problem they are trying to solve or with a solution they want to implement, and we will provide the tools and platform to allow them to carry it out. Even when we provide expert workshops or trainings it usually comes from the communities’ interests.”

When Soup & Socks eV first arrived in Katsikas with the goal of setting up a community kitchen, the infrastructure there was not great: only 16 chemical toilets for 1,200 refugees, no running water, and no sewage. But, in just seven months, the project transformed into the Habibi.Works makerspace, which provides people in the camps with access to several workshops, including a 3D printing fab lab.

“The infrastructure has improved a lot, people are no longer living in tents but in containers with individual bathrooms and kitchens. Still, they are forced to live in this hostile ghetto, excluded from the Greek society, the labour market and in many cases also from education. There is still a lot of work to do to improve the situation of the thousands of people who are looking for a better life in Europe,” Abouchadi said. “3D printing in the maker space is just a small step towards a better life, and it’s a way for people to occupy themselves with accomplishment and learning.”

The makerspace offers multiple working areas, like a sewing atelier, a metal workshop, a wood workshop, and a Media Lab, which offers access to technology like virtual reality, laser cutting, and 3D printing. Abouchadi is the overseer of the media lab and 3D printing, offering computer classes, facilitating workshops, and teaching makers how to design and print their own models, which he says is an “empowering” experience.

“This space offers new opportunities to the caring individuals, brilliant minds and hardworking hands who live in this camp,” said Abouchadi. “Creating solutions instead of waiting for solutions has an incomparable impact on people’s living situation, motivation and self-confidence.”

A highlight in the media lab is its new Mass Portal 3D printer, which was donated to the makerspace by Materialise. The company has made a pledge to sustainability in order to make the world a better place, and donated the system as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility program, which supports NGOs, non-profits, and other initiatives that work on projects involving “the use of technology to improve people’s lives and make the world a better place.”

Abouchadi is pleased about the new 3D printer, which is helping community members and refugees alike learn how to design their own 3D models.


“This is an upgrade on our previous machine as it allows for double extrusion, and creates much more accurate prints.”

People who use the Habibi.Works makerspace and workshops come up with their own ideas for what to make, then get help from volunteers to build on their skills and turn those ideas into reality. Together, they decide on the best approach, be it woodworking, laser cutting, or 3D printing, and then complete the project. Because of this type of collaboration, the project is ushering in renewed educational and vocational interests as makers are ready and willing to, as Materialise put it, “explore their potential” and improve their situation.

Ever since the Mass Portal 3D printer arrived, makers have been busily designing and printing objects that are fun, like mini airplane toys and chess sets, and practical, like jewelry and phone stands. Abouchadi says he can already see the “positive effects” the donation is having on the motivation and spirit of the community. 3D printing has been used to provide more immediate needs, such as shoes, housing, and medical devices, to refugees, but putting the power of the technology in their own hands is fulfilling a different sort of need.

If you’re interested in making a donation so Habibi.Works can purchase 3D printing filament so more refugees can turn their ideas into real objects, you can do so here.

Discuss this story and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com or share your thoughts in the Facebook comments below.

[Source/Images: Materialise]