Mass production of re-usable surgical and N95 style face masks made from Polyurethane foam

在过去的30年里，Urofoam有限公司一直在英国生产技术聚氨酯产品。我们是大规模生产成型泡沫组件的专家，为以下行业提供服务：体育、汽车、航空航天、石油和医疗。由于新冠肺炎的影响，我们将注意力集中在开发可清洗和可重复使用的口罩上，以帮助解决国家的供应短缺问题。该口罩将具有与目前市场上的口罩相当的性能特征，可在一个月内开始生产，并可批量生产。这种口罩由模压成型的聚氨酯泡沫制成，它允许空气双向流动，并设计用于过滤来自佩戴者和周围区域的空气飞沫。因为它是可洗涤和可重复使用的，它被设计用于亚临床医疗保健领域，如医院清洁工，搬运工，辅助人员，护理人员。它不是为亲密卫生保健接触而设计的，而焚烧的一次性使用口罩是最合适的。目前的口罩是用聚酯纤维或木浆纤维生产的，从供应链的角度来看，每种口罩都有局限性。我们的聚氨酯口罩几乎所有材料都来自英国，其余材料来自德国。作为成型过程的一部分，我们还可以加入抗病毒和抗菌化合物，以限制传播风险。我们的意图是将我们4条批量生产线中的3条转换为生产口罩，初始产量超过每周20,000个。

Urofoam Ltd has been manufacturing technical polyurethane products in the UK for the past 30 years. We are specialists in mass-produced moulded foam components, servicing industries such as; sports, automotive, aerospace, oil and medical.As a result of the impact of Covid-19, we have focused our attention on developing a washable and reusable face mask to help meet the nation's shortfall in supply. The mask will have performance characteristics comparable to those in the market at the moment, can begin production within a month and can be mass-produced.The face mask is made from a moulded polyurethane foam which allows air to flow both ways and is designed to filter airborne droplets from both the wearer and the surrounding area. Because it is washable and reusable it is designed to be used in sub-clinical healthcare areas such as hospital cleaners, porters, ancillary staff, care workers. It is not designed for intimate healthcare contact where single-use, disposable masks destined for incineration would be most appropriate.Current masks are produced using either polyester or wood pulp fibres, each having limitations from a supply chain perspective. Our polyurethane mask sources almost all materials from the UK, with the remainder coming from Germany. As part of the moulding process, we can also incorporate antiviral and antimicrobial compounds which limit the risk of transmission.Our intention is to convert 3 of our 4 volume production lines to produce masks, with an initial output in excess of 20,000 units per week.