ABU DHABI — The Abu Dhabi University, ADU, College of Engineering has rallied its engineering labs to join the fight against COVID-19, and by working closely with hospitals in Abu Dhabi, produced over 1,000 clips required for face masks within just two days.

Additionally, ADU has successfully developed its first prototype of a face shield to be provided to hospitals and other healthcare facilities across the emirate.

The parts were manufactured by ADU’s faculty members, Eng. Abid Abdul Azeez, a teaching assistant specializing in mechanical engineering, and Archit. Ahmed Al Awawdah, a teaching assistant specializing in architecture, under the supervision of Dr. Mohammad Alkhedher, chair of the mechanical engineering department, and Dr. Magdy Ibrahim, chair of the architecture and interior design department.

They created a modified design for the face shield by laser cutting the plastic material in such a way that it is comfortable for use.

The final prototype took two days to create, including the initial blueprint design that was developed by modifying the existing design in order to accommodate the comfort factor and the time for manufacturing and assembling the parts. The university aims to send 100 shields to hospitals in the weeks ahead.

"Using the resources available within our facilities, and the expertise of our resident faculty members and teaching assistants, we have been able to use advanced technology to support the local healthcare sector. We look forward to expanding our reach to other hospitals to share the products and do our part to help combat the virus," said Professor Waqar Ahmad, Chancellor of ADU.

"We were successful in creating the prototype using machinery in our laboratory, which we have also embedded in our curriculum for students to use as part of developing their practical skills. We support the students in using advanced technologies, such as 3D printing machines and laser cutting techniques, as part of our vision to provide our students with a holistic learning experience," said Dr. Hamdi Sheibani, dean, College of Engineering.