Advanced Imaging, Inc. manufactures ‘hero face shields’

ADVANCED IMAGING, INC.’S cutting machine, called an I-Cut, lives in a room of its own. A colorful backdrop is an example of wallpaper wrap the company, owned by John and Carin Macnamara of Wakefield, printed. (Courtesy Photo)

Published May 15, 2020 edition.

By GAIL LOWE

WAKEFIELD — Along with millions of other Americans, 2020 is a year Wakefield residents John Macnamara and his wife Carin will never forget.

When the novel coronavirus took the world by storm, the Macnamaras’ company — Advanced Imaging, Inc. — took on a new project by manufacturing more than 25,000 “hero face shields.”

They donated the shields directly to first responders and health care professionals in order to get them immediately to the people most in need. The shields, representing a value of nearly $200,000, are designed to keep front line workers safe from COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus.

Before the onslaught of the disease, the company specialized in large format graphics and custom fabrication and catered to museums, retail chains, trade shows and interior corporate branding projects.

But following the outbreak, several million dollars of equipment and 30 employees sat idle at their facility on Ballardvale Street in Wilmington. Eventually, many employees were furloughed. As the news reports started to broadcast about the potential infection and death rate, the couple knew right away that they could not just sit around and do nothing. They had to help. Because the company had thousands of yards of fabric on hand they thought about making face masks, but that soon proved to be too time consuming to get out substantial quantities.

Face shields were tried next. With their computerized CNC cutting machines, the shields could be fabricated in a fraction of the time it took to make the masks — up to 1,000 per day, six days a week.

“Our immediate thought was to help the hospitals and first responders who were in dire need of supplies,” said Carin, creative director for the company. “Once word got out, we immediately had nurses stopping by to pick up shields for their upcoming shifts every day.”

The hero face shields were made by what Carin called an “amazing group of volunteers,” including furloughed workers and friends who worked in shifts of eight to 10. They constructed the shields safely, one by one, with gloved hands and masked faces while maintaining all CDC workplace guidelines.

Advanced Imaging had to completely retool and reorganize their facility in a matter of days to become a face shield factory, no small feat for a company that has suffered greatly during the pandemic. But there’s more. In addition to the face shields, they are now producing COVID safety graphics such as floor decals, plexi-barriers for counters and desktops and wall and window signage.

Carin believes that the ability to be innovative and nimble is the key to survival in any industry.

“In life’s challenges, perseverance, hard work and positive thinking at all times are also required,” she commented, noting also that the experience of donating hero face shields to doctors, Intensive Care Unit nurses, respiratory therapists and first responders has been humbling.

“We see their tears of gratitude behind their face masks,” Carin said. “A box of 50 shields is worth $400 so I think they understand the financial gift as well as the intrinsic value.

“They all say we are helping to keep them safe and are saving lives. What can be more important than that? The brightest beauty in our lives is when we selflessly help our fellow human beings.”

For the Macnamaras, “give us this day our daily bread” has special meaning. “To us, it means taking a step forward in faith one day at a time. You can’t give up. We can beat this if we all work together.”

A glance to the future shows Carin and John planning to re-hire their employees in stages and seeing how it goes.

“It will be impossible to hire all 30 back at one time because there’ll be a slow start to the work flow,” she noted. “We’ll have a small crew to start.”

Asked how Advanced Imaging will continue to survive, Carin thinks the best approach will be to “find a need, fill a need and help others.”

“There will never be a return to the old norms. A new normal requires more innovation,” she said. “We revamped our services in a matter of days, creating window counter shields, social distancing graphics for floors, tile, carpets and walls — everything that pertains to safety.”

CBS-TV recently interviewed the Macnamaras about their donation of Hero Face Shields.
To view, visit https://www.instagram.com/p/B_F09H8HKtK/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link.
Also, to view the brave heroes and heroines outfitted in Advanced Imaging face shields, visit https://www.advimage.com/faceshields4heroesheroines.

For more information go to https://www.advimage.com