The American Institute of Architects Los Angeles (AIA |LA) chapter has been asked by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti to aid the city in its efforts to expand the growing #OperationPPE initiative that has taken root in the city. 

Initiated by a team led by University of Southern California (USC) Associate Professor Alvin Huang, #OperationPPE brings together resources and expertise from throughout the USC ecosystem (including its medical and engineering schools) with the productive capabilities of local architecture firms, universities, and other 3D-printing facilities. The effort, which includes contributions from University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc), and Cal Poly LA Metro architecture programs, has been working around the clock over the last week to manufacture makeshift Personal Protective Equipment for area hospital workers who are on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic. 

In a daily press briefing last week, Mayor Garcetti expressed his support for #OperationPPE, stating that the city was “working with local universities, design schools, and architecture firms to utilize their materials and expertise” in the race to produce much-needed protective equipment.

An email sent out by AIA|LA staff over the weekend reads, “Mayor Eric Garcetti’s Officeis ramping up production of pseudo N95 masks and safety shields for area hospitals.” The message adds that AIA|LA has been asked by Mayor Garcetti to have potential contributors fill out a survey describing their printing capabilities. See here for the survey.

The message continues: “The Mayor’s program will begin once production for Keck has completed and it will use the same designs as approved by Keck and NIH. But time is critical.PPEs are urgently needed by area hospitals to take care of the people of Los Angeles.“