Eon Dental, a Jordanian dental technology company that traditionally manufactures clear aligners, has collaborated together with three individuals and the relevant authorities in Jordan to develop and produce certain consumables and spare parts for ventilators urgently needed in the fight against COVID-19.

Making use of their 3D printing technology capabilities, the company has reconfigured some of their large 3D printing machines to churn out 3,800+ parts per day. "We knew that we had to be proactive to combat the COVID-19 outbreak in Jordan and leverage our scientific, Engineering and manufacturing capabilities," said Fadi Samawi, Director of Manufacturing at Eon Dental. "We have been working together with Eng. Ziad Abu Ayyash, CEO and founder of Sannula Safe MedTech, who has asked us to manufacture the parts for a work in progress ventilator prototype in addition to Eng. Akram Idress Al-Hmoud, and Eng. Omar Wajdi Abdul Hadi who have all volunteered their time to develop the parts and consumables that we have delivered to the authorities to test the efficacy of the consumables and parts that are needed on a daily basis across the Kingdom". The first parts were delivered on Thursday the 9th of April, 2020.

COVID-19 infects people by latching its spiky surface protein to receptors on healthy cells, especially those in your lungs, and making copies of itself that multiplies throughout the individual's body. This can lead to difficulties breathing and pneumonia, an infection of the tiny air sacs inside your lungs where blood exchanges oxygen and carbon dioxide. The most severe COVID-19 patients are no longer able to breathe on their own and are placed on Ventilators, life- support machines that help a patient’s lung continue to work and buy them time for their body to fight off the infection.

"It is important that every company that is able to help and has the resources to help now do their part to combat COVID-19 however they can. This is a global issue that will impact everyone, especially high-risk patients and the first-responders and no one is immune to its impact," said Samawi. The parts that are being tested for manufacturing include replaceable parts and consumables that are needed to avoid cross-contamination and extend the lifetime use of the ventilators.

Samawi also indicated that Eon Dental is looking to also manufacture and 3D print face-shields for first-responders and healthcare providers in Jordan. “We are working together with our 3D printing partners in Singapore to create the STL printable files which will allow us to print the face-shields here locally in Amman and are already speaking to suppliers of the flexi-glass. I hope we will have these ready by the 3rd week of April to deploy in hospitals around the Kingdom and for neighboring countries.".

Eon Dental is a manufacturer of clear aligners, a medical appliance that straightens teeth without the use of wires and brackets. Established in 2011, the company provides its products in the Middle East, Europe, Asia and the United States.