Locust Valley man 3D prints, donates homemade face shields

As an architect at EDI International, Evan Yan said he is lucky to be able to work out of his Locust Valley home during the coronavirus pandemic. However, he said he understands that many other people are not so fortunate. Some jobs still dictate that employees work in public spaces. Yan knew he could use his own 3D printer to help, so he searched the internet for guidance on how to make face shields.

“I really wanted to help and thought about what I could do,” Yan, 30, said, “and luckily, online there’s a huge community of people trying to make these things as easy as possible.”

Using plastic and acrylic materials easily purchased online, Yan said he began 3D printing his own face shields on March 18, which are effective in protecting wearers from possibly inhaling the coronavirus from others.

At first, he said he wanted to create them for healthcare workers. However, he said he soon realized that cashiers in grocery stores can be just as much at risk and decided to focus his efforts there are well.

And since one mask costs only 66 cents to make, Yan decided to donate his creations free of charge to various donation centers around Nassau County. However, in recent weeks, he has also branched out to specific organizations, including Oyster Bay Manor Assisted Living, Cove Animal Rescue and Green Forest Veterinary Hospital in Glen Cove.

The first business he helped was Rising Tides, the natural food market where Yan worked as a teenager growing up in Glen Cove.

Owner Jerry Farrell said Yan began working at Rising Tides as a clerk when he was 15 years old. After he went to architecture school, Yan came back to help Farrell redesign the store. Now, Yan is using his skills to design a larger building across the street to which the market will move in the near future.

Yan and Farrell have maintained a connection over the years. It did not take long for Yan to realize that Rising Tides’s employees might not be safe during the pandemic.

“He knew that we were on the front lines of this service industry,” Farrell said, “and it was at a point where he recognized that we couldn’t get any face masks.”

Yan created 15 face shields and dropped them off at the store, allowing for each employee to have their own personal mask, something which Farrell said is integral to the safety of his staff. The store is only allowing curbside pickup for the time being. The staff shops for customers before bringing their orders out to their cars.

Nonetheless, Farrell said the conditions can still be dangerous. The face shields help him, his staff and their customers feel a bit safer.

“By doing curbside pickup and shopping orders for our customers, we are often in less than ideal safe zones,” Farrell said. “This just protects us from people who otherwise might be more exposed than if we didn’t have [face shields].”

Yan said he is encouraged by the amount of information that is on the internet about what everyday people can do to help others during this crisis. It’s through mutual assistance that society will get through this, he said, and every bit of effort can help.