Specialty Fabrics Review June 2020 - 12

BRIEFINGS

SWATCHES

Marine masks and shields

A

TOP LEFT AND MIDDLE: Carl Pellegrini
of SeaCanvas, Egg Harbor Township, N.J.,
spent several weeks this spring making and
donating face shields to 10 local police and
fire departments. Photos: SeaCanvas.
TOP RIGHT: Chris Ritsema, of Canvas
Innovations, Holland, Mich., models one
of the 50,000 masks his company made
in partnership with volunteers organized
by the nonprofit Anchor Rock Foundation
for nursing homes and assisted living and
hospice facilities. Photo: Canvas Innovations.
ABOVE: Hallett Canvas and Sails of
Falmouth, Maine, has been selling and
donating thousands of masks up and down
the East Coast. The effort provides jobs
for the existing staff and family members
furloughed from outside positions.
Photo: Hallett Canvas and Sails.

s the new normal for businesses around the U.S. became fabricating
personal protective equipment, the marine fabrication community stepped
up. Carl Pellegrini, owner of SeaCanvas, Egg Harbor Township, N.J., spent
several weeks this spring making and donating face shields to 10 local police
and fire departments using materials on-hand such as O'Sea Regalite .040
sheet vinyl, Block-It® Matrix fabric from Kimberly-Clark and foam. "Every
police department was super appreciative of our program. We supplied our
face shields in a custom bag with the shields divided by paper sleeves. Our
Eastman cutter was able to cut 40 shields in four minutes."
Megan Hallett, general manager of Hallett Canvas and Sails of Falmouth,
Maine, says her family's shop pivoted to face masks by repurposing Evolution®
Block-It fabric, leech line for straps and barrel locks for strap tighteners. "We
were able to produce mass quantities instantly with the use of our 40-foot
Autometrix cutting table." The shop has been selling and donating thousands
of masks up and down the East Coast. Hallett says their efforts have provided
jobs for the existing staff as well as family members furloughed from outside
positions. "We were able to quickly pivot and help not just those in need of
masks, but those in need of jobs!"
Chris Ritsema, owner of Canvas Innovations, Holland, Mich., wanted to
leverage his company's automated cutting capabilities to help the largest
number of people. "I knew that as a company we were limited as to how
many masks we could make, so I started thinking outside the box." He joined
forces with a childhood friend who was finalizing the nonprofit Anchor Rock
Foundation. Together they launched a social media campaign that drew
volunteers from across the community to make and distribute masks to
nursing homes and assisted living and hospice facilities.
Canvas Innovations organized production, cut all the parts, and created
sewing instructions and videos for the volunteers. Anchor Rock Foundation
managed volunteers and donations. "Our goal," says Ritsema, "was to make
40,000 masks. By the end of April, we had orders for over 50,000."

12 REVIEW JUNE 2020

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5/15/20 10:23 AM
Specialty Fabrics Review June 2020

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