NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) and Don Schumacher Motorsports (DSM), DSR’s manufacturing arm, have joined the fight to help protect our nation’s brave health care workers on the front lines tirelessly treating patients seeking medical assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In response to the growing need for supplies, DSM has teamed up with Stratasys, a global leader in additive manufacturing or 3D printing technology, to produce headbands that will be used for medical face shields in healthcare facilities. DSM’s two Stratasys FDM 3D printers, the Stratasys Fortus 450mc and F370, are typically used for chassis fixturing, weldment fixturing, rapid prototype development and proofing out new components for DSR’s fleet of race cars. With NHRA drag racing at a temporary standstill, both printers have switched gears and are now working round-the-clock to churn out as many headbands as possible throughout the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

 
“We take this pandemic very seriously and want to do our part to help,” said DSM owner Don Schumacher. “When our partners at Stratasys approached us about producing these crucial pieces for medical face shields, we didn’t hesitate to say ‘yes.’ We have the capability, so, of course, we wanted to do whatever we could to help support the vulnerable medical personnel that are working so hard during these unprecedented times. A huge thank you to Stratasys for leading this initiative.”
 
Upon completion, the DSM-produced headbands are turned over to Stratasys, who then installs clear shields to the bands. The finished goods are placed into inventory at the Stratasys warehouse and then distributed to hospitals upon request via an online request form.

 
“The response from the staff at DSM for the Stratasys COVID-19 face shield initiative is greatly appreciated,” said Allen Kreemer, Stratasys’ Senior Strategic Applications Engineer, Americas. “DSM has put its state-of-the-art manufacturing facility to work in record time, producing face shield frames that will be used to protect many healthcare workers. DSM continues to redefine the meaning of the word ‘partner’ during this challenging time.”