In the current coronavirus environment full of stress and anxiety, leave it to sports — or more specifically, a hockey equipment manufacturer — to lend a helping hand in the fight against the pandemic.
Canada-based Bauer Hockey already has a jump on any United States company by changing its product line from hockey gear to medical equipment. At its Quebec facility, Bauer is now producing medical shields that could be available for delivery as early as next week.
Protection that allows athletes to give everything for their team is our heritage.
Right now, we’re all on the same team. We’re repurposing our facilities to make face shields so that medical professionals battling COVID-19 can safely continue to help those most vulnerable. pic.twitter.com/pBiZuUWdVl
— BAUER Hockey (@BauerHockey) March 25, 2020
The new product line will be fully available to U.S. hospitals and medical facilities.
In a recent ESPN interview, Bauer CEO Ed Kinnaly said: “In the U.S., honestly, the word is not out yet.”
Kinnaly also mentioned his company will aggressively spread the word on social media regarding their new medical products and the Quebec manufacturing facility already has more than 100,000 Canadian orders for the medical face shields.
In addition to their face shield, which resembles something a welder would sport, Bauer has produced a smaller mask that fits over the nose and mouth, and closely resembles the much sought after N-95 respirator mask. According to Kinnaly, his company’s face shield costs approximately $3, including shipping.
Bauer also operates a factory in upstate New York with a few employees who mainly work on lacrosse products. Their labor time will certainly help with United States distribution, according to Kinnaly.
