A new software invented at the University of Michigan that speeds up 3D printing has hit the market.

ANN ARBOR – At the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in Michigan in March, local residents launched Operation Face Shield in response to the shortage of personal protective equipment. Operation Face Shield organizer Kevin Leeser said the group just surpassed 50,000 donations -- about enough to fill the stands in the old Tigers stadium. Operation Face Shield teamed up with medical relief Global Links to send the PPE to Nicaragua and Honduras. Ricardo mass-produced thousands of films, and combined with the invention of an injection mold at Ferris State University which could churn out six frames a minute, Operation Face Shield went from small at-home effort to large-scale operation. Leeser said that Operation Face Shield currently has 2,000 shields ready to donate.