Tooling for a COVID-19 world

The emergence of COVID-19 has forced businesses, including manufacturers, into uncharted territory in terms of health and safety. As companies reopen, they grapple with how to implement viable operating procedures while minimizing the risk of infection for employees and customers.

For the economy to regain its footing while the virus is still at large, a combination of health and safety controls must be in place. In addition to supplying personal protective equipment for employees, businesses are implementing what the Occupational Safety and Health Administration calls engineering controls — items that physically alter a work environment to reduce the risk of infection.

Sneeze guards commonly hover above salad bars and buffets but are becoming a prolific, crucial part of retail existence — or for any industry with face-to-face interactions, for that matter. With demand growing for physical barriers, manufacturers are rising to meet it. Case in point: A local company providing sneeze guard shield panels needed machined polycarbonate bases.

The call came in. Retail businesses and medical offices needed sneeze guards as soon as possible. Material was — and continues to be — scarce, so we used the polycarbonate drops that our client had on hand. Within hours, we had worked up a speeds-and-feeds recipe to machine the drops. As is so often the case with job shop work, we wanted to push the machine and cutting tool as hard as we could to minimize cycle time, just not at the risk of ruining tools or material.