Additive Manufacturing for Hospitals – Learning Program (AM HLP)

During the COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals reported shortages of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) supplies.

This led to substantial challenges for hospitals in expanding their capacity to treat patients with COVID-19. 3D Printing communities and companies were quick to understand that Additive Manufacturing (AM) had the potential to ease the breakdown in the medical supply chain. Hospitals have begun planning to set-up their own AM capabilities and agile AM supply chains to bridge shortages in their current supply chain. In this project, we aim to empower hospitals to implement AM in their facilities and/or make use of a distributed network of local producers of AM parts. At the end of the project, hospitals will be capable of producing medical products on-demand in emergency situations such as a pandemic. Furthermore, AM-HLP will open-up new business opportunities and market segments for the AM industry.

All involved partners:

• Fraunhofer
• INEGI – Institute of Science and Innovation in Mechanical and Industrial Engineering
• INESC TEC – Institute for Systems and Computer Engineering
• Technology and Science
• Politecnico di Milano