The Community Feedback Loop

The Community Feedback Loop

Rhode Island's Rapid Solvers is a multidisciplinary group of engineers, makers, healthcare professionals, and others whose goal is to apply rapid solutions to real-world problems presented by the COVID-19 crisis. We have used rapid prototyping technology such as 3D printers and laser cutters to supply face shields and other PPE, and members of our group have also developed rapidly deployable alternatives to ventilators and filter medium. We will share our best practices for sharing and improving files and workflows, sourcing raw materials, staffing 3D print farms, forecasting demand and developing a fulfillment chain, and making connections between people who can make PPE and those who need it.

What are the problems you aim to help solve with this project?:
Rapid Solvers is an umbrella infrastructure for responding quickly to asymmetries brought about by a crisis. We aim to be a framework for addressing as-yet-unseen needs due to this current crisis. We also are working to maintain this framework long after this crisis is behind us so that we can respond to other problems with appropriate technology.

Project Website