Upstate Medical University to receive 1,000 face shields from Vistaprint

SYRACUSE — Upstate Medical University will receive a donation of 1,000 face shields from Vistaprint to help in its COVID-19 fight, the company announced.

Vistaprint, known for its printed marketing materials, says it is using its current large-format printing machines — used to print banners and other materials — to develop face shields. 

In a matter of days, Vistaprint deconstructed and optimized the Vistaprint cutter, traditionally used to print banners and signage. A student working at Vistaprint then designed a way to skip the “printing” process to maximize production.

Upstate Medical University is one of 100 health-care facilities in underserved, small communities across the U.S. that will receive 1,000 face shields each to be used by health-care workers in treating COVID-19 patients.

In an effort to get face shields into the hands of frontline workers as quickly as possible, Vistaprint said it is adapting its North American manufacturing processes and is sharing this knowledge throughout its global operations to expand production.

Vistaprint is a global e-commerce company, serving more than 17 million small-business customers with printed and digital-marketing products.