Simple idea is nothing to sneeze at for Wollongong Hospital staff

Almost two weeks ago, Signarama at Fairy Meadow decided to use their laser cutter to make perspex "sneeze guards" to protect their counter staff.

The free-standing guard sits on top of the front counter and protects staff from customers' coughs, sneezes and the like, while still being able to carry on a conversation.

It was an idea that appealed to staff at the local health district when they heard about it.

"It came up in conversation with another project we were working on with them," said Signarama's sales manager Corey Middleton.

"We elaborated on what we were doing and the idea sparked from there and was circled around Wollongong Hospital."

The result was guards were ordered for hospital and were due to be delivered this week.

"The first ones will be on the counter at Wollongong Hospital's admissions counter and also the emergency department counter is being upgraded to carry one of these," Mr Middleton said.

He said the guards could be used outside the health field as well.

"It's discrete, it's portable, it's standalone so it can be deployed anywhere across the Illawarra," Mr Middleton said.

"There are people like us who are trading through this who need to face the public every day and you've got to try and keep your staff safe as you do that."

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There was also a benefit to Signarama in that the guards could open up a new business avenue for the Fairy Meadow company.

"We were looking to diversify our offering and where we can draw business from as everything is shutting down around us," Mr Middleton said.

"Our typical client base has contracted a fair bit."

The move coincided with the NSW government's call for businesses to look at ways they can reconfigure their production lines to make vital supplies for hospitals, such as hand sanitiser, gloves, masks and eyewear.

"This is a call to arms for NSW manufacturers to look at ways to convert production lines into making the items we so desperately need," Premier Gladys Berejiklian said.

"We have the ability within NSW to meet our local demand and the government is moving to help manufacturers re-tool quickly to achieve this.

"Importantly, providing this opportunity to manufacturers will also allow some businesses to keep people in jobs when they may not have been able to do so."

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