WEST COLUMBIA, S.C. — Governor Henry McMaster spent Friday morning touring Z-Verse, a West Columbia company that is making face shields for front line workers.
John Carrington, employee of Z-Verse, saw the need for face masks and shields when the coronavirus pandemic started a few months ago.
Z-Verse is a digital manufacturing technology company that specializes in rapid product development and design.
"Eight weeks ago, my company, we started receiving urgent calls from local hospitals and county agencies for a reusable protective face shield as they were in a critical shortage," said Carrington.
The face shields are injected molded. There are two different face shields made by the company. One is specifically for healthcare professionals who are in COVID-19 positive environments. The other is for other front line workers.
So far, the company has delivered more than 3 million face shields to front line workers in South Carolina and across the country. 340,000 of those were delivered to the South Carolina Emergency Management Division. Several million have been taken to the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs and local hospitals in the Palmetto State.
For healthcare workers, the company is able to produce 100,000 of the shields a day. Z-Verse anticipates producing 10 million before July.
The company said they were also testing with major food and grocery store chains.
Z-Verse had 25 employees a few weeks ago. With the increase in production, they've hired an additional 30 employees and are thinking of hiring 100 more.
The new face shield the company introduced Friday is called the Z-Shield Flex.
"As businesses are getting back to reopening and they are grappling with this sort of new world, post COVID world... and grappling with how they work, conduct business and provide good customer experience, but protect their employees and their customers," explained Carrington.
The clear shield helps provide a barrier so droplets don't spread, protecting both the employee and the customer.
The company believes because these marks are so easy to use, more people will comply with wearing face shields.
"It worked, not only successfully for his company but also for the people of South Carolina and people of the country and I think even the people of the world," said Governor McMaster.
The Governor says he's happy to see business owners take chances to make creative products like the face shield to help out the South Carolina community.
"It gives us some options, gives some flexibility but the main thing it gives us some safety. It gives us real good protection," explained Governor McMaster.
People can learn more about the face shield made by Z-Verse by clicking here.