NWI Landing TEST

Fighting COVID-19 with Nonwovens—#Coronafighters

The Nonwovens Institute (NWI) at North Carolina State University is proactively responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our aim is to fully leverage and fortify our facilities to produce face masks that are desperately needed in the coronavirus fight. Join the fight and DONATE NOW.
The challenge in the USA and, indeed, the world is a shortage of both the most critical component – the meltblown nonwoven filtration media – and of the converting capacity to make a face mask.
Thus, with the full support of NC State, NWI is dedicating its meltblown and spunbond nonwoven making facilities and expertise to produce specially designed fabrics that can be delivered to USA manufacturers to assemble face masks, and is also investing in new converting equipment to locally assemble ready-to-use face masks for healthcare workers, and for public use. To learn more, please see the detailed description of face mask technologies and products by Dr. Behnam Pourdeyhimi, NWI Executive Director.
NWI is proud to be making a big impact in this crisis. There are many opportunities for collaborators, partners, suppliers, and customers to engage in this fight by contributing to the needs for money, equipment, and materials as captured below.

How Will This Impact Normal Operations and Services at NWI During the Crisis?

NWI is concentrating efforts on forming filter media and facemasks to help in the current crisis.  The Spring IAB Meeting will be held virtually to help keep student research on track.  Access to labs is restricted in this period:

• Meltblown and Spunbond Labs: Dedicated to producing filter media for facemasks.
• Analytical Lab: Temporarily closed to focus on filtration media production.
• Staple/Carding Lab: Temporarily closed to focus on filtration media production.
• Fiber Science Lab: Temporarily closed to focus on filtration media production.

Labs and full service will resume when possible.  We look forward to continuing to serve your needs in the future.

A Necessary Filter

Nonwovens Institute ramps up to create mask filters—and masks—for health care workers.

Photo by Marc Hall

The Nonwovens Institute (NWI) at North Carolina State University is proactively responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our aim is to fully leverage and fortify our facilities to produce facemasks that are desperately needed in the coronavirus fight. Thus, with the full support of NC State, NWI is dedicating its meltblown and spunbond nonwoven making facilities and expertise to produce specially designed fabrics that can be delivered to USA manufacturers to assemble facemasks.