ONEONTA, NY (WUTR-TV) — It is an effort that many people at the Suny Oneonta campus are striving to do — that is helping to stop the spread of coronavirus. SUNY Oneonta Volunteers Creating PPE is a group of SUNY Oneonta faculty and staff, as well as members of the Oneonta and surrounding communities, working together to create and distribute PPE for mainly the Long Island/NYC regions. However, the group will send to areas across the country who have been affected by COVID-19. The group’s focus in on 3D printed face shield parts, medical gowns and scrub caps, and cloth facemasks.

“While the need for PPE is spiking in other states its not like the requirements for PPE are less now necessary in New York. Nationwide, there’s still a profound shortage of PPE, it’s still a very big problem,” says Doug Reilly, Director, A.J. Read Science Discovery Center. “The idea came about pretty organically. Several offices and people on campus started working on this very early on in the pandemic and the formation of the group came after that.”

The PPE is made through a production line on the stage of the Goodrich Theater on campus. Matthew Grenier, Assistant Technical Director, Theatre Department at SUNY Oneonta says working in an assembly is more efficient and safer. “If you can use a pair of scissors, and you can hold a heat gun, you can help make a medical gown,” says Grenier.

As of early June 2020, SUNY Oneonta VCPPE has produced and distributed over 1,200 3D printed face shield parts, over 600 gowns, over 1,000 scrub caps, and several hundred cloth facemasks.

With support from the College at Oneonta Foundation, the A.J. Read Science Discovery Center is a founding sponsor of SUNY Oneonta VCPPE. Other members include teams located in the Theatre Department, Art Department, the School of Science, and the Cooperstown Graduate Program in Museum Studies. SUNY Oneonta VCPPE also works closely with Health & Safety in the Office of Facilities Planning.

To learn more or interested in getting involved click here.