The civil engineering department of the Indian Institute of Technology Madras has designed and developed a personal protective equipment (PPE) doffing unit for Government Chengalpattu Medical College.
Financial support for construction of the doffing unit came from corporates through their CSR arms.
Koshy Varghese and Arul Jayachandran, professors in the civil engineering department, fabricated the unit in collaboration with a team of public works department officials at the hospital, complying with the safety norms required for COVID-19 pandemic.
The collaboration was entirety done remotely, during the lockdown period in April, according to the institute.
IIT-M incubated start-up EPMCR and Fabricators Steel Tech and Metalscape along with two architects from Akarma Designs worked on the project.
On May 6, the Chengalpattu District Collector John Louis commissioned the unit.
The Centre for Urbanisation, Building and Environment (CUBE), a centre of excellence established by the Institute jointly with the State government, will work with governments and hospitals to design and advise on deployment of doffing units based on specific needs.
