West Cook News

A group of local 3D printer owners known as the “Noble Army” have produced over 7,200 face shields for health care workers, first responders and critical service providers in Cook County.

“I am so proud of this group and its determination,” Oak Park resident Rob Parks told Wednesday Journal. “We are running it like a business and we want to keep this operation going.”

Wednesday Journal reports Parks started the group to help individuals on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic. He originally used an email chain to find people with 3D printers who would be interested in contributing to the cause.

“At first, a friend forwarded me an email from Rob saying he was looking for help,” Elmwood Park Public Library employee Ahren Sievers told Wednesday Journal. “It was about as grassroots as you can get.”

Sievers is using the library’s 3D printer to make face shields and is spreading the word about the effort to the community. 

Wednesday Journal reports that when Fenwick High School teacher Dave Kleinhans was told about what Parks was doing, he decided to bring home a few school printers and put them in his basement.

“It's like Tony Stark's set up,” Kleinhans told Wednesday Journal. “I am able to print these frames with five printers and we are steadily keeping this whole thing going.”

Parks is now spreading the word about the cause on a newly created website. FaceFieldFactory.com offers guides on how to join a face shield factory team, how to create a team in areas that aren’t covered by the Noble Army, and how to recruit community members to help.

At the time the Wednesday Journal article was published, the Noble Army was receiving 200 face shield order requests per day. Parks has enlisted the help of an online supplier to meet the growing demand for the plastic sheets that attach to the frames produced by the 3D printers. The mask design has also been modified to eliminate the expense of elastic.