COVID-19: Building Inexpensive PPE for Hospitals & EMTs
Today, FORMUFIT is providing a simple and inexpensive plan to build a PVC Respiratory Protection Tent. This plan is free and available here, or in our PVC Plans Library.
This assembly can be used by doctors and nurses during intubation for respirator prep and other procedures to protect both patient and health professional. It can also be used by EMTs in the transport of patients in and out of buildings, as well as in-transit within an ambulance.
The use of this Respiratory Protection Chamber eases the already high risk of sterilization loss and the overtaxing of Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) that hospitals are forced to ration or reuse due to shortages.Furthermore, we are providing a comparative list of lower-cost items from our Closeout section that can be used in place of our standard product, to keep the cost of building this equipment extremely low. This will get more of these important life-saving tools in the hands of our medical professionals. The following list of items can be substituted for the items listed in the plan. Please note that all Closeout items are limited in quantity.
1/2" Part Discounted Alternatives
| FORMUFIT SKU | Closeout SKU | Replacement Description |
|---|---|---|
| F0123WE | TF0123WE-GY-N | 1/2" Size 3-Way PVC - Gray |
| TF0123WE-IV-N | 1/2" Size 3-Way PVC - Ivory | |
| TF0123WE-WH-N | 1/2" Size 3-Way PVC - Utility Grade White | |
| F012TEE | TF012TEE-GY-N | 1/2" Size Tee PVC - Gray |
| TF012TEE-IV-N | 1/2" Size Tee PVC - Ivory | |
| F01290E | TF01290E-GY-N | 1/2" Size 90 Deg PVC - Gray |
| TF01290E-IV-N | 1/2" Size 90 Deg PVC - Ivory |
3/4" Part Discounted Alternatives
| FORMUFIT SKU | Closeout SKU | Replacement Description |
|---|---|---|
| F0343WE | TF0343WE-IV-N | 3/4" Size 3-Way PVC - Ivory |
| F034TEE | TF034TEE-IV-N | 3/4" Size Tee PVC - Ivory |
| F03490E | TF03490E-IV-N | 3/4" Size 90 Deg PVC - Ivory |
This particular tent can be built with off-the-shelf PVC Pipe and a few FORMUFIT fittings. We have also included the use our closeout Material Snap Clamp (which is a limited availability product) at a very low cost, allowing one PVC Respiratory Protection Tent to be built for just a few dollars. The Material Snap Clamp also allows for the positioning and replacement of the plastic sheeting as needed to keep the environment sterile.
This is not our final plan and ask for input from the medical community. We will continue to provide additional plans to help our neighbors contribute and support the front-line medical staff across the country, and around the world, during this crisis.
