One layer at a time, one mask at a time. Inside a fabricating co-op in Totowa known as the Maker Depot, 29-year-old mechanical engineer and lab manager Shweta Thapa is hoping to make a difference.
The Newark resident is part of a new initiative encouraging the 10,000 members of Women in 3D Printing, a global technology organization, to use their hardware and software skills to fight the COVID-19 pandemic by making some of the products that are in short supply.
“We had an announcement last week that the hospitals are having a shortage of all these things, so our co-founder, she announced that we potentially could help 3D printing be a part of the process,” Thapa said, referring to Nora Touré, a veteran of the 3D printing industry, also known as additive manufacturing, as well as activist and educator.
The virus has infected more than 205,000 people worldwide and killed more than…