InkSmith, a 3D printing company in Kitchener, has launched a new enterprise to focus solely on producing its face shield for healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The product and new company have both been dubbed The Canadian Shield.

The face shield received Health Canada approval in March and since then, has been shipped to Cambridge Memorial Hospital, Grand River Hospital in Kitchener, Joseph Brant Hospital in Burlington, Queensway Carleton Hospital in Ottawa, among others.

Jeremy Hedges, founder and CEO of InkSmith and The Canadian Shield, said they've hired 60 people, all of whom recently lost their jobs due to the pandemic.

"This is more than just a short-lived enterprise to combat the spread of COVID-19. We are making a long-term commitment to bringing Canadian manufacturing back to the Kitchener-Waterloo region and our hope is that we can help as many people as we can along the way," Hedges said in a release about the new company.

The company said it is able to produce 50,000 face shields a day. The release said The Canadian Shield is now looking to expand to a second manufacturing facility and "will be exploring opportunities for global distribution."