A&M EDM, an award-winning engineering company based on Mornington Road in Smethwick, is helping combat the spread of coronavirus as part of the Ventilator Challenge UK supply chain.

Ventilator Challenge UK is a consortium of industrial, technology and engineering businesses from across the aerospace, automotive and medical sectors. Including big names such as Rolls-Royce, Airbus, and leading Formula One racing teams, the aim is to provide the NHS with 10,000 medical ventilators to meet the current high demand.

A&M was approached by the consortium to manufacture components for a ventilator based on the ESO2 system by Oxford-based company Penlon. A&M applied its CNC machining expertise, with staff working three shifts a day over the weekend to machine, turn, inspect and dispatch the components.

In addition, A&M is 3D printing head bands and chin pieces for face shields to be used by front line workers. The 3D printing industry distributed an approved design, which many SMEs are printing. A&M will be able to print around 60 per week, part of a collective effort producing thousands in total. A&M has put in place strict social distancing measures and regular hand washing in order to continue production without danger to its staff.

A&M’s production director Stuart Talbot said: “We are proud to be part of the Ventilator Challenge UK team. One of our responses to the crisis was to ask staff to work in a more flexible way as the company needed – we did not expect that this would lead to more overtime and continuous weekend working. Manufacturing these parts means our staff are contributing to the collective effort to supply the NHS with much needed equipment at this challenging time.”

If you have good news stories or ways in which your business is helping during this crisis, please share them with us. We know this is a tough time for everyone, not least businesses, so if you’re just coping day to day, that’s enough. We have rounded up plenty of support for Sandwell businesses in these pages.