Sound Devices Pivots From AV to PPE
Innovation and passion have always been at the core of the music products industry. NAMM members like Sound Devices of Wisconsin have taken these values to new heights. Amid the global pandemic that is COVID-19, Sound Devices has shifted a large portion of their manufacturing efforts to assist and protect those who are on the front lines of exposure with the virus.
Sound Devices normally manufactures cutting edge multitrack mixer-recorders, USB audio interfaces, wireless microphone systems and related accessories that serve the broadcast, film, and other media industries. Located in both Reedsburg and Madison, Wisconsin, Sound Devices was moved by the impact COVID-19 is having on the world and took it upon themselves to assist medical professionals and other frontline workers. Seeing a shortage of Personal Protective Equipment for employees in vulnerable fields (healthcare professionals, first responders, etc.), the team at Sound Devices decided to shift their manufacturing efforts from their traditional audio-visual equipment to this new unknown field of producing PPE.
I was able to sit down with Elizabeth Wadium, project manager for Sound Devices to discuss this new opportunity to serve the global community during this time of crisis.
What motivated the shift from audio products to manufacturing PPE, specifically the face shields?
There is an acute shortage of PPE available for healthcare workers and workers in other vulnerable fields. As a small company, we were able to shift assembly operations quickly, and wanted to do our part to help during this challenging time. We have discovered that face shields are relatively fast and easy to make within our operation. We are using an open-source design created by the lovely folks at Delve.
What were some of the biggest challenges in pivoting to now creating a whole new line of products?
Our biggest challenge has been procuring the raw material to make the shields. Our purchasing department has been working day and night to acquire material. Last week two of them were driving from store to store throughout Wisconsin buying up all the elastic they could find! Currently, 50% of our workforce is dedicated to facilitating the production of these face shields, including employees who are working from their homes. Everyone is putting in long hours to improve our process so we can produce the most face shields possible. We offer two models of face shields: the FS-1 single-use face shield with latex headband, and the FS-1NL single-use face shield with a latex-free headband.
How many face shields is the team able to produce at this time?
On our first day of production, we produced a few hundred face shields. Thanks to the hard work of our engineers and assembly staff, we are now producing about 5,000 shields per day. At the moment, all assembly is manual, however, we are currently retooling our assembly process to increase production even more.
Where are the newly manufactured face shields being utilized?
Besides healthcare facilities, our face shields are going to nursing homes, first responders (EMT, Fire, and Police), election workers, funeral homes, and dental practices. We are selling our face shields at-cost, so there is no profit being made.
When does Sound Devices plan on returning to their normal operations?
We don’t have an end-date for producing face shields at this time. However, we are also committed to maintaining our regular activity as much as possible during Wisconsin’s “Safer at Home” policy. We continue to develop firmware for our audio products, create educational content, and are available for customer support!
If NAMM Members would like to get involved, is there a way they can help?
Yes! If you know of a facility or group in the USA that needs PPE, or has further inquiries, please send them to store.sounddevices.com.
A special thanks to the team at Sound Devices to their compassion and dedication to serving those who are on the frontline against COVID-19. For more information about Sound Devices and the products they manufacture please visit them at https://www.sounddevices.com/. You can also follow their story on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter @sounddevices or on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/user/sounddev.