Husco leverages conveyors for N95 respirator production

Husco, a high-performance hydraulic and electro-mechanical components specialist based in Waukesha, Wisc., shifted part of its production to manufacturing N95 respirators used by healthcare professionals and first responders to help prevent the spread of Covid-19 infection or illness. Husco is part of a consortium called MaskForce, a group representing all facets of southeastern Wisconsin businesses to design, develop and produce the reusable face mask.

“It was a priority for us to help those on the front lines get the PPE they need to safely do their job[s],” says Brian Cull, director of advanced manufacturing engineering at Husco. “Being able to bring solutions that directly impact peoples’ lives is inspiring.”

For Husco to begin the manufacturing process, it needed a conveyor to move completed N95 respirators to a bagger for packaging. Working closely with the conveyor systems manufacturer, along with Crane Production Systems, a Waukesha-based distributor, Husco was able to specify and receive a 2200 Series conveyor on the same day.

The conveyor systems manufacturer was able to supply Husco with a 10-foot-long, 6-inch-wide 2200 Series, a versatile platform engineered for numerous applications and industries, including accumulation, small-part transfers, inclines and declines, automated and manual assembly, and packaging and industrial. As a final step prior to packaging, N95 respirators are applied with disinfectant. The conveyor moves the respirators underneath an air knife to not only ensure they’re dried, but to also perform a final cleaning. Masks then travel to a bagger, where they are packaged and ready for shipping.

Crane Production Systems worked alongside the conveyor systems manufacturer in April to identify the right conveyor for Husco.

“The project, as a whole, really demonstrated how the greater Milwaukee area came together, collaborated and put together solutions to get help to the field quickly,” Cull says. “These businesses all got together and said, ‘What do we need to do?’ It was really inspiring and rewarding to work in that environment.”

Dorner
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