Tonight we're taking a closer look at a growing nationwide movement of maker's designers, engineers, science teachers and students all banding together from their basements and garages, using three D printers, in some cases to help keep much needed personal protective equipment on the front lines.

ABC is Devin Dwyer has their story.

It's the sound of American ingenuity and a time of crisis.

Ah, a cottage industry of three D printing teachers and teenagers gaining steam to fight Cove it 19 from Louisiana doing their part to Montana.

Over here we have bank of three D printers, entire families turning their basements and garages into production lines for that personal protective equipment.

Now in short supply.

This is our lab way.

Colorado seventh grader Amelia Brown and her father, Matt, giving us an inside look at their Operation three D printers making plastic headbands for face shields one per hour around the clock.

This is Ah, one that's being printed.

The printer takes thin beats, a plastic printers melting filament to create a pre program design on a heated surface.

Many makers using donated raw materials to create their prints free of charge.

Others selling at cost about a dollar apiece on the's down here are finished in Maryland.

Todd Blatt shows us how a laser cutter shapes those clear shields, his art studio turned assembly line churning out more than 1200 shields.

So far, we're shipping out 500 facials today to Arizona.

Retired Air Force engineer John Grant is part of the effort.

He's attaching overhead projector sheets from school classrooms.

23 D printed headbands.

He says a college professor inspired his face shield design.

People always tell us, Just remember, the experiment can always be solved with the materials in the room.

And any time I've come up, uh, you know, some kind of problem that seems insoluble.

I say that to myself and somehow found a way to get a ton of the American spirit of generosity unflinching in the face of a pandemic.

You see our little collection bin right there.

Whoa!

Yesterday we collected about 250 visors.

Minnesota science teacher Mark Westlake has collected within 700 face shields so far from dozens of volunteer three D printers across the twin cities here, old bag all of the shields that have been donated.

His ST Thomas Academy Innovation Center, now a community distribution hub.

Who are these going to going to the Dakota County sheriff?

Many deliveries headed straight to the front lines at local hospitals, over and over and over again.

We here we've had to use the same three D printed shield or the same visor for days in there, crack and the foggy, and it can't be cleaned anymore.

I mean, that's That's the way the PEOPIE situation is right now.

It's a little scary wth e f D A.

Says three D printing may be useful in a pinch, but warns homemade protective gear is unlikely to provide the same fluid barrier and air filtration protection as certified equipment.

Eventually, companies that make this professionally, uh, in batches off 10,000 at a time are gonna fill that.

Yeah, you guys were something of a Band Aid, right?

We're just trying to fill a little small gap.

The shortages even felt in rural America.

Montana teachers Buffy Smith and Jakes Pierson have been getting orders for their three D printed facemasks nonstop.

Montana, Department of Corrections Order 200 of them.

Montana I care.

Ordered 100 of them.

And then, interestingly enough, we need some that we're going to West Virginia to a doctor there.

That's kind of how Montana works.

You know, somebody who knows somebody and printers in Buffy's basement by your son's drum set running around the clock.

DENVER The movement is taking off more than 1500 community volunteers banding together to make for covert now starting air delivery of three D printed P P E to rural hospitals.

Figure this was a way I could use my skills to help.

Where needed.

Volunteer pilot Eric Ackland is on leave from United Airlines.

His cargo today.

Eight boxes of homemade face shield for a hospital that just got its first cove.

It positive patient.

We really started to realize that those fools face shields were very, very important.

And in fact, I was pretty worried because we were counting them to say, Do we have enough to get through a shifter, too?

That's why I mean, we're boy, were we blessed when somebody said, Hey, we've got the solution for you will bring them to you and part of that effort Shields made in Amelia and Matt Brown's family garage.

How does it make you feel to see these hospitals actually be getting these shields?

I'm glad that they're getting to where they need to be.

That's the That's what we're doing it for us to help people.

Families Filling the gap for P p e 13 D printer at a time There's always something that everybody can do.

Even if you don't have a three D printer, you can you can help somehow.

For ABC News Live I'm Devin Dwyer in Washington.

Hi, everyone.

George Stephanopoulos here.

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