Local ingenuity: Machine shop works with engineers to design and manufacture ventilators - The Republic

With the coronavirus outbreak shutting down many businesses in the area for the near future, one company is looking to give back to the staff at Columbus Regional Hospital.

Barry Turner, who is the owner of Turner Machine Specialties, a machine shop that specializes in low volume, precision parts, was approached by Steve Ferdon, a longtime friend of 25 years, about a way to help the hospital.

Ferdon had been in contact with Steve Baker, vice president and chief technology information officer at Columbus Regional Health, about a possible shortage of respirators and ventilators.

Columbus Regional Health officials asked if Ferdon and Mission Columbus, which is an outreach program out of Asbury United Methodist Church in Columbus, had the resources to get respirators and ventilators and filters and hoods produced. That was when Ferdon thought of Turner and his company.

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A sample of the ventilators, P.A.P.Rs (respirators) and hoods that the Mission Columbus Team has designed, tested and is now manufacturing and assembling. Submitted photo

A sample of the ventilators, P.A.P.Rs (respirators) and hoods that the Mission Columbus Team has designed, tested and is now manufacturing and assembling. Submitted photo

A sample of the ventilators, P.A.P.Rs (respirators) and hoods that the Mission Columbus Team has designed, tested and is now manufacturing and assembling. Submitted photo

“I just called (Turner) out of the blue and said, ‘Hey, do you know something about ventilators, and if we find a design would you be interested in partnering with us?’” Ferdon said. “At that point we started talking to other people we knew, and gathering a group of engineers and machinists and people who knew how to buy stuff and off it went.”

The collaboration of volunteers consists of around 40 engineers, machinists, supply chain professionals, medical professionals and retirees. They started on the project over a month ago, and are working as a Volunteer Organization Acting in Disaster (VOAD) in response to a community Emergency Management request for emergency equipment.

Turner focused on the ventilators portion of the project while Ron Hale, director of engineering at Cummins, Inc. concentrated on the respirator portion.

“(Ferdon) reached out to me and called a few other people in the community that he knew had the ability to design and make things,” Turner said. “That was how I got engaged in it.”

RHOHM, a Columbus electrical engineering and circuit design firm, has also been involved with the project with Turner handling the mechanics side. The company handled all the controls, which is all the electronics to make it function for the hospital.

“RHOHM was very instrumental from making it a simple mechanism to a device that the hospital was happy with,” Turner said.

The prototype is built, and the hospital has reviewed it and taken it in for assessment and are in the process of acquiring the units, according to Turner.

Turner also said that they had to change motors during the process and got help from Sam Geckler and the Columbus Robotics, a youth organization that competes in “For the Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology” (FIRST) Robotics competitions. Geckler also gave Turner ideas on what motor drives that would work based on experiences with the team.

It was initially thought that around 100 ventilators were going to be needed, but that number has since decreased due to the lowered surge in the number of coronavirus cases than the original projections indicated. However, there are still more requests for respirators and hoods.

Turner’s company has produced the prototype and 13 more ventilators are in process currently and more will continue to be produced.

“We haven’t built a ventilator before,” Turner said. “With a little research and some time designing, we built the first one very quickly.”

Turner says that the hospital has agreed to cover the basic material costs that would be used to make the ventilators, but are not charged for the machining time, the design time, the assembly time and all the manufacturing time.

“There’s a lot of people jumping in,” Turner said. “Every time we meet, we give thanks for the fact that we put together this talented group of people that can make this happen, and then we pray that we never need them.”

About Turner's Machining Specialties

Founding: 1977 by Morris Turner, who retired that year after a 37-year career at Cummins. Currently operated by Barry Turner, Morris’ son, who is company president.

Location: 820 Repp Drive, Columbus

Employees: 30

Information: 812-372-9472

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