A university professor who lives near Salisbury has been awarded an MBE in the Queen’s birthday honours for his contribution towards the fight against Covid-19.
Professor Hywel Morgan, of the University of Southampton, has been recognised for services to biomedical engineering. He is one of two MBE recipients in the Salisbury area.
As the country went into lockdown back in March, the 60-year-old, who lives in Nomansland, and his colleague Professor Paul Elkington led a team of engineers to develop new, reusable PPE in the form of a respirator to protect healthcare workers on the frontline.
Bringing together engineers from the University of Southampton, clinicians at University Hospital Southampton and industry partners including McLaren, Kemp Sails and INDO Lighting, Prof Morgan and his team turned an idea into a prototype in less than a week.
The respirator was then tested on wards and manufactured at scale in less than a month.
Prof Morgan said: “We were all trying really hard to do something useful. PPE and protecting the health of frontline workers was really important so it’s really heartening to see [the prototype] has developed into something that’s being used.”
The Southampton personal respirator (PeRSo) purifies air by drawing it through a highly efficient filter, and then blows it via a tube into the wearer’s hood, which has a clear visor so the entire face is visible.
It can be worn throughout a worker’s shift and could have a major role to play in achieving the government’s latest PPE strategy, which includes an emphasis on reusable equipment manufactured in the UK.
Commenting on his MBE, Prof Morgan said: “I was completely taken aback. When I got the email I didn’t know what to make of it. I’m really delighted, not just for me but for the team that worked with me to develop the respirator. The award is for them as well.”
The professor's team have also recently been awarded a President’s Special Award for Pandemic Service by the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng).
Currently, the team are working on a compact lightweight version specifically designed to protect care-home residents and staff.
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