Peterborough engineers work around the clock to make ventilator parts for NHS

BSL Precision Engineering, based off Saville Road, Westwood, has put its entire engineering team on standby for the arrival of orders for ventilator parts.

All other contracts at the firm, which makes components for industries such as site investigation, hydraulics and agricultural, are put to one side while the team focuses on turning out the vital ventilator segments that include tiny aluminium dowels and small brass hex pins to 12mm thick bellows plates made of black acetal.

Operations Manager, Thomas Fielding, who is overseeing the production and distribution of the ventilator parts, said: “It is all made from material we would normally use - aluminium, brass, acetal.

“We’re able to simply use a different program on our machines and they pump out the parts.”

Mr Fielding said: “BSL is working overtime to produce as many parts as we can.

“We have a day shift crew and night shift crew so we can work around the clock.

“In our first batch, we made enough parts for five ventilators.

“The morning after delivering them we had an order in for another 50.”

The engineering team wears Tyvek throw-away overalls, latex gloves and face masks during working hours.

All machines are cleaned and disinfected in-between shifts and each part produced is cleaned and disinfected before being packaged in air-tight packaging.

Mr Fielding added: “From the day and night production and distribution of life-saving equipment to safe and simple practices of disinfection and social distancing, the BSL team are certainly doing their part, and would like to inspire others to follow suit.”