Mattress industry supplier MidWest Nonwovens is now assembling much-needed face shields at its 80,000-square-foot plant at the company’s Sauget, Illinois headquarters. The company has partnered with two other St. Louis-area businesses in the effort — moving supplies company Boxing It Up, which supplies components for the clear plastic shields, and medical products company Inx Medical, which handles distribution.
“We are trying to help our local community police, fire and EMT departments with face shields,” said MidWest President Bryan Speight. “With such a shortage of (personal protective equipment) in our area and nationwide, we wanted to help. We were introduced to Inx Medical located in St. Louis (and) I immediately volunteered MidWest Nonwovens to help. With our current business operating at 35%, it was a great opportunity to keep our team members employed and do something to assist in such terrible and difficult times.”
The first batch of face shields MidWest produced were donated to the Edwardsville, Illinois, fire department, according to an April 22 story in The Edwardsville Intelligencer.
Edwardsville fire chief, Rick Welle, told The Intelligencer, “PPE is difficult to come by during this pandemic. Face shields help protect firefighters, medics and police officers from droplets that can be spread from others during the stabilization of an emergency call. They are a big part of the efforts to keep our emergency workers healthy and on the job.”
More donations have followed, with 500 delivered to the Illinois state police and local St. Louis police departments. The inexpensive shields provide an added level of protection when paired with an effective face mask. They are available for sale to individuals and businesses that must interact with the public during the pandemic. For sales information, contact Steve Kilburn of Inx Medical, phone 636-333-1010.
MidWest Nonwovens supplies a range of fiber products to the mattress industry, including FR barriers, densified pads, polyester fiber batting, wool batting and alpaca fleece batting.
Please note: ISPA wants to hear about challenges and successes in supplying critical equipment needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. If you encounter government regulatory problems where we might be able to help, or if you have ideas on how ISPA can further assist the industry in its efforts to help, contact Grant Johnson, ISPA policy and government affairs, phone 571-635-6302, email [email protected]. Find more information: ISPA COVID-19 Member Resources page
