The switch from sign making to producing face masks at Swansea-based Valley Group arrived when Richard Dawson, a director of the company received a telephone call from a lifelong friend and well-respected doctor and clinical lead at the Hywel Dda University Health Board, who said its existing supplier of face masks had exhausted its capacity, leaving 10,000+ staff in desperate need of protection.

One critical factor for Valley Group was the cutting of 0.5 mm thick PETG face visors, which had to be free from burrs and sharp edges. However, the Valley Group has been a customer of ITC for more than a decade, so when it came to cut thin plastic sheets on its Biesse Klever routing machine, ITC recommended the Clearcut 180 series of solid-carbide, single-flute down-cut routing tools. Valley Group’s router runs at 24,000 rpm with a feed rate of 10 m/min. With demand rising, the company is aiming to start a second shift so it can increase production from 700 to 1400 masks per day.
For further information www.itc-ltd.co.uk

Starrag UK has bolstered its nationwide sales team with the appointment of Phil Roberts as sales manager to meet an increasing number of enquiries for its machine range and engineering solutions.

Roberts, whose role will include focusing on customers in Starrag’s target areas of aerospace, energy, transportation, industrial and medical devices, brings to Starrag UK more than 20 years’ experience in production engineering and machine-tool sales, especially in developing solutions for complex turning and multi-axis milling applications.
For further information www.starrag.com

As a part of the national effort to provide much needed PPE in the fight against COVID-19, Ricardo has turned to the production of face shields that will be used by frontline NHS healthcare staff, as well as key workers in the care sector.

To ensure that these essential PPE items can get to NHS employees who need them as quickly as possible, facilities at Ricardo’s Technical Centres in Shoreham and Leamington Spa are being repurposed as assembly lines and logistics centres for face shields. Ricardo used its manufacturing supply chain expertise to engage with an injection moulding partner, to create a tool capable of high-volume manufacture.
For further information https://ricardo.com/

Rockwood Composites and Leonardo have marked the 10th anniversary of their partnership with delivery of the 10,000th blade for the towed decoy on the Eurofighter Typhoon.

All parts are fully CNC machined and supplied paint-ready on a just-in-time basis. Rockwood has also supplied Leonardo with connector plates for the wing. Holly Jones, senior subcontract buyer at Leonardo in the UK, says: “Our 10-year partnership with Rockwood is testament to their ability to deliver quality composite components, consistently, when we need them.”
For further information www.rockwoodcomposites.com

In an open letter, business and industry secretary Alok Sharma MP (pictured) has stressed the importance of manufacturers remaining open during the current COVID-19 pandemic (while observing safe working practices).

“Our country needs your support to keep supply chains moving and key workers mobile, as well as to protect the economy as much as possible,” he stated. “Manufacturing is a critical part of our economy and I would like to be clear that there is no restriction on manufacturing continuing under the current rules. Guidelines from Public Health England provide best practice advice on how this can be done safely.”
He added: “I, my fellow ministers and department officials, are in regular contact with industry leaders and trade associations to monitor the effect of COVID-19 on manufacturing and its workforce, and this will carry on. I’m fully committed to continue engaging through the coming days, weeks and beyond to ensure that we can support our manufacturing sector. I realise this will be challenging, but you are contributing to the resilience of our nation and I am grateful for the enormous efforts you are making in order to support the UK at this testing time.”
For further information www.gov.uk