U.S. Engineering CEO Tyler Nottberg and his wife Leigh partnered with local business leaders to finance the production of 10,000 medical face shields for the University of Kanas Health System.   

In another example of communities and businesses coming together during a crisis, local manufacturer Dimensional Innovations (DI) collaborated with InStore Design Display and students from the University of Kansas Center for Design Research to create an open-source face shield design available for download, a free design for anyone to use.  

Nottberg notes that Tucker Trotter at DI and Randy Edge at InStore Design, “spearheaded things on the design effort.  Gill Studios is running the first 10,000 shields for KU starting today [Friday, March 27]. They should be delivered next week.” 

InStore originated the design, refined it with DI, and from there the design team worked directly with professionals in the University of Kansas Health System, dropping off prototypes for medical teams to try out and narrowing down models to reach the best and easiest-to-produce shield. 

In an interview with the Kansas City Business Journal, Trotter said, “As long as you have a CNC router, a laser cutter or a punch, you can create these things…. We’re just thrilled to try and make a dent in this problem. It’s one small piece, but everyone has to do their part. It’s natural for business leaders to look inward, but we’ve also got to make sure we’re looking outward for the good of our community and doing everything we can to make a difference.” 

Watch a video with Brandon Wood, Innovation Lab Manager at DI, below.  

Read more about the face shields, download cut files and assembly instructions and view other shield prototypes here. 

header image: Dimensional Innovations