Alan Hudson from Ollerton, Nottingham has been busy using his lockdown time to print thousands of plastic clips called ‘Ear Savers’, saving keyworker’s ears from the pressure of wearing surgical masks.
Many keyworkers on the front line during the Coronavirus pandemic are wearing PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) for long periods of time whilst working hard to support those effected by the virus. Most face masks that are available hook behind the wearer’s ears, causing sores. This is where Alan comes in.
Alan uses four 3D printers creating over 200 plastic biodegradable Ear Savers every day. In just over a week since starting up, he has managed to produce more than 2,200 clips which have been sent all over the country to hospitals, carers, vets, police, army members, ambulance crew and many more.
Carpenter and owner of AJ’s Farmhouse Furniture, Alan has had to put his own business on hold as due to the COVID-19 pandemic he is no longer allowed to deliver his furniture as it is assembled at the customer’s residence. He now uses his time to produce furniture in his workshop whilst 3D printing the Ear Savers.
Alan’s partner Shelena Hartley and her 7-year-old daughter, Wynter-Rose Ebbins have been helping to package up the Ear Savers ready to send them off to those who need them. Shelena has also created a Facebook page called ‘Saving Ears’ so that people can follow their project. Alan has even posted a video recently explaining how a 3D printer works.
So far, Alan has spent £1000 of his own money on this project, including the purchase of another 3D printer, supplies and postage and packaging.
If you would like to order some FREE Ear Savers, please visit the website https://bit.ly/2JNoOsu where you can also see the official count of how many clips have been made so far.
For daily updates, please visit their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/savingears/
Alan and Shelena ask that if you would like to support this cause, please donate to a GoFundMe page that has been set up in aid of their close friend Simon, who suddenly passed away. Simon’s family members are in need of help to raise money to pay for the funeral. To donate, please visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/simon-ebert-the-send-off-you-deserve
