About
Centre of Excellence in Protective Equipment and Materials (CEPEM)
The CEPEM was established in response to a call from Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) to start local manufacturing of face masks and face shields due to the anticipated supply chain breakdown in March of 2020 caused by COVID-19. In just over a month, the CEPEM team provided design, identified suitable materials and developed validation tests so that local manufacturers are now producing 20,000 face shields/day (Whitebird) and 20,000 masks/day (Niko apparel) to supply HHS. In this process, the centre has also developed a testing facility that can assess various filtration materials for breathability (pressure drop), particulate filtration efficiency (PFE), bacterial filtration efficiency (BFE) and fit testing.
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Hamilton Health Sciences

Whitebird

The Woodbridge Group

Niko Apparel Systems

Due to shut down of access to test facilities in the US for Canadian companies, we have served as a much needed resource for Canadian companies in validating their materials for use in face mask.
For example, we have worked closely with Woodbridge, providing them guidance on certification process and testing their material combinations to identify the best one for level 3 surgical masks. Woodbridge has now obtained formal Health Canada approval and has started producing these masks in their facilities in Ontario.
OUR VISION
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Research and Development
To assist with the research and development needs for Canadian companies, both existing and new, so that they can meet today’s demand for PPE in Canada.
Global Leader in PPE
To create the next generation of personal protective equipment to become global leaders. Taken together, this collection of infrastructure and projects will be unique not only in Canada but also in the rest of world.
CEPEM – Our Focus
Thematic Areas
The activities of the centre are focused on the following thematic areas:

1. Design and development of PPE
Existing PPEs such as face mask and face shields were not specifically designed for medical use and have dated designs that don’t incorporate latest advance in materials and manufacturing technologies. We will design and develop the next generation PPE that are customizable to the individual’s facial features, use the latest functional materials and incorporate the needs and requirements of medical professionals. We will also develop reusable PPEs that are capable of being sterilized and reused making them green and reusable.

2. Advanced Manufacturing
We will work with Canadian manufacturers of PPEs in automation of operations for PPE manufacturing. In addition, we will also develop new manufacturing processes for meltblown, meltspun and electrospun materials to produce functional hybrid composites that will enable high performance PPEs. Small-scale prototyping equipment for melt blowing, meltspinning and electrospinning will form a core facility within the center.

3. Functional Materials
The properties and performance of the PPEs are ultimately dependent on the materials used. Existing PPEs use commodity polymers such as polypropylene and polyethylene. We will assist new Canadian manufacturers of non-wovens to identify suitable polymer blends and additives that can provide additional functional properties such as antimicrobial, antiviral, self cleaning, air purifying, pathogen and chemical sensing, active water and blood repelling, humidity and thermal control.
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4. Testing and validation
A core facility within the center will be a well validated and robust testing facility that will be capable to performing assessment on barrier properties (air flow resistance, particulate and bacterial filtration efficiency, quantitative fit testing, aerosol distribution visualization), mechanical integrity (tensile, bulge, adhesion, pull, flexural and fatigue) and materials properties (microscopic structure, pore size, fiber uniformity, composition, leaching, degradation). This facility will serve as a resource not only for academic research but also for the local industry.

5. Standards
Current standards for PPEs such as facemasks of face shields are not intended or specifically designed with their medical use in mind. We will work with national agencies to define Canadian and international standards for testing of PPEs. In particular, we will focus on the medical use and collaborate with medical colleagues to formulate standards that would assess performance of PPEs under medically relevant conditions.

6. Sustainability
PPEs currently used are mostly disposable due to the fear of contamination between uses. However, being manufactured from polymers obtained from fossil fuels and incinerated after a single use, they contribute to greenhouse gases and eventually climate change. We will develop PPEs using natural polymers such as cellulose and with biodegradable properties that can avoid use of fossil fuels in their manufacture and limit their contribution to climate change.
CEPEM – Our People
Leadership Team

Dr. P. Ravi Selvaganapathy
Executive Director

Dr. Rakesh Sahu
Director of Operation
Operational Team

Dr. Nidhi Jain
Laboratory Manager

Mukesh Singh
Research Assistant

Heera Marway
Research Coordinator

Dr. Pedram Karimipour Fard
Postdoctoral Fellow
Associate Members

P. Ravi Selvaganapathy
Mechanical Engineering / 1. Design and development of PPE, 2. Advanced Manufacturing, 3. Functional Materials, 4. Testing and validation, 5. Standards, 6. Sustainability

David Latulippe
Chemical Engineering / 3. Functional Materials, 4. Testing and validation, 5. Standards

Charles de Lannoy
Chemical Engineering / 3. Functional Materials, 4. Testing and validation, 5. Standards

Zeinab Hosseinidoust
Chemical Engineering / 3. Functional Materials, 4. Testing and validation, 5. Standards

Chan Y. Ching
Mechanical Engineering / 1. Design and development of PPE, 2. Advanced Manufacturing, 3. Functional Materials, 4. Testing and validation

John Preston
Engineering Physics / 3. Functional Materials, 4. Testing and validation, 5. Standards, 6. Sustainability

Stephen C. Veldhuis
Mechanical Engineering / 2. Advanced Manufacturing, 4. Testing and validation

Todd Hoare
Chemical Engineering / 2. Advanced Manufacturing, 3. Functional Materials, 6. Sustainability

Benzhong (Robin) Zhao
Civil Engineering / 4. Testing and validation, 5. Standards

Nabil Bassim
Materials Science and Engineering / 2. Advanced Manufacturing, 3. Functional Materials

Jamal Deen
Electrical Engineering / 1. Design and development of PPE, 2. Advanced Manufacturing

Igor Zhitomirsky
Materials Science and Engineering / 3. Functional Materials, 6. Sustainability

Qiyin Fang
Engineering Physics / 1. Design and development of PPE, 2. Advanced Manufacturing

Kathryn Grandfield
Materials Science and Engineering / 2. Advanced Manufacturing, 3. Functional Materials

Michael Noseworthy
Electrical Engineering / 1. Design and development of PPE, 2. Advanced Manufacturing

Michael Thompson
Chemical Engineering / 2. Advanced Manufacturing, 3. Functional Materials, 4. Testing and validation, 6. Sustainability

Li Xi
Chemical Engineering / 2. Advanced Manufacturing, 6. Sustainability

Wael El-Dakhakhni
Civil Engineering / 4. Testing and validation, 5. Standards

James S. Cotton
Mechanical Engineering / 2. Advanced Manufacturing, 3. Functional Materials

Cheryl Quenneville
Mechanical Engineering / 4. Testing and validation, 5. Standards

Imran Satia
Medicine, St. Joesph Healthcare
1. Design and development of PPE, 5. Standards

Catherine Clase
Medicine, Hamilton Health Sciences
1. Design and development of PPE, 5. Standards

Mohamed Eltorki
Medicine, Hamilton Health Sciences
1. Design and development of PPE, 5. Standards

Prathiba Harsha
Research Development and Innovation, Hamilton Health Sciences
4. Testing and validation, 5. Standards

Bryan Herechuk
Hamilton Health Sciences
4. Testing and validation, 5. Standards

Myrna Dolovich
Medicine, St. Joseph’s Health Care
1. Design and development of PPE, 5. Standards

Alison Fox-Robichaud
Medicine, Hamilton Health Sciences
2. Advanced Manufacturing, 3. Functional Materials

Joe Hayward
Medical Physics, Hamilton Health Sciences
2. Advanced Manufacturing, 3. Functional Materials
CEPEM – Facilities
Testing

Particle Filtration Efficiency Tester
The custom built setup is used to measure the initial particle filtration efficiency of materials used in medical facemasks using a dispersion of latex microparticles.

Autoclave 40L, Bench Top
The autoclave uses high pressure steam to kill bacteria, viruses, fungi, and spores, allowing equipment and liquids to be sterilized.

Breath Simulation Module
Particle Filtration Efficiency tester is used to detect the filtration efficiency of various medical and daily PPE equipment

Bacterial Filtration Efficiency Tester
The bacterial filtration efficiency test setup (QT-FMBF2100) is used to determine the BFE of medical face mask materials or the face mask as a whole by challenging an aerosol of bacterial suspension onto the samples.

Handheld Particle Counter
The MET ONE HHPC 6+ is a full-featured six channel handheld particle counter designed for a wide range of tasks in high technology cleanroom manufacturing environments such as semiconductor or flat panel display manufacturing.

Biological Safety Cabinets
NU-540-400 NuAire LabGard Class II Type biological safety cabinets are enclosed, ventilated workspaces that allow for sterile conditions to be maintained when working with biohazardous materials such as pathogens.

PortaCount 8048
The PortaCount Fit Tester provides a consistent and objective testing experience across all respirator types, including all N95 filtering facepieces. Fit check mode shows in real-time how respirator fit changes throughout donning and adjustment, helping users select the right mask and identify the best fit faster.

TSI 8130A Automated Filter Tester
The Automated Filter Tester Model 8130A is the best solution for testing penetration or filter efficiency and pressure drop of particulate respirator filters, disposable filtering face pieces, and a wide assortment of filter media. It can generate salt or oil test aerosol and uses high sensitivity photometers to determine the filtration efficiency or penetration. The pressure drop is measured with a top-of-the-line pressure transducer.
Charaterization

High Speed Camera
Chronos 2.1-HD is a self-contained, handheld, high-speed camera made to capture 1080p cinematic quality images. The Chronos 2.1-HD can shoot 1,000 fps at its maximum resolution and up to 24,046 fps at lower resolutions. Four different user-friendly recording modes enable high-speed imagery ideal for industrial and scientific research applications

EVOS XL Inverted Microscope
The Invitrogen EVOS XL core imaging system is a fully automated, digital, inverted imaging system. The system is designed for a broad range of transmitted light applications including time-lapse imaging, manual-assist cell counting, and image review.

Multi-Mode Spectrophotometer
The SpectraMax® M2e Multi-Mode Microplate Reader are dual monochromator, multi-detection instruments with a triple-mode cuvette port and a 6-well to 384-well plate read capability.

SurPASS 3 Electrokinetic analyzer
SurPASS 3 is a fully automated zeta potential analyzer for solid surfaces. As electrokinetic analyzers, they employ the classic streaming potential and streaming current method for a direct analysis of the surface zeta potential.
Manufacturing

Innovenso NE300 Electrospinner
NE300 is a lab-scale electrospinning device used to create electrospun nonwovens using polymer solutions. Electrospinning is a versatile method of forming nanofibers using a high voltage electric field that stretches the polymer solution into thin fibers. It has a 9-nozzle feeding unit along with basic cylindrical and plate collectors that allow for a wide range of membrane geometries to be produced from polymers.

MeltBlowing
The modular meltblowing unit is designed to vary the process conditions effectively and create nonwovens with varying fiber diameters and gsm.

Novaspider Prolab3D Melt Electrowriter
Prolab3D melt electrowriter enables forming scaffolds for tissue engineering applications in a chamber with controlled temperature and humidity. Extrusion techniques combined with high voltage electric field allows the user to control the fiber diameter on demand.

Ball Mill
MM500 nano is designed for the crushing, grinding, mixing and homogenisation of wet and dry soft, medium-hard, fibrous and brittle materials with an initial particle size of up to 10 mm.

Solution Blowing
Solution blowing is used to create nonwovens using polymer that may degrade at high temperatures but can dissolve in a solvent. The high velocity air stream combined with a high voltage electric field is used to create nanometer sized fibers.
CEPEM – Lab Access and Training
General Information
The CEPEM has in-house health and safety procedures that are mandatory for individuals to access the facility independently.
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CEPEM Lab Safety and Training
Individuals must complete specific McMaster Safety Training and other CEPEM requirements to become CEPEM users.
Step 1: McMaster Safety Training
In order to access the CEPEM you must have completed the trainings listed in the CEPEM safety training matrix.
To see your training, please head to mosaic. From Mosaic home screen , click on regulatory training and click on training summary. Compare your training to the training matrix to ensure you can access CEPEM.
If you are missing training you can enroll in training from regulatory training screen in mosaic.
Take a screen shot of the training summary, and paste the summary in a *.doc or *.pdf to submit in part 3.
Step 2: Fill out the CEPEM training forums
Fill out the CEPEM Forums for access, and after hours access (if applicable). Ensure that your supervisor has also signed off on the access forum.
Step 3: Submit the forums
Ensure to email the forums and the training summary to Dr. Nidhi Jain (njain@mcmaster.ca)
Step 4: Create a Q-Reserve account
Login into Q – Reserve using your Mac ID and search for CEPEM. From here you will be able to book time on lab equipment.
CEPEM – In the News
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The best-fitting N95 mask for everyone Learn More
January 20, 2023
For her master’s thesis, McMaster University student Fatima Sheikh spent time at Hamilton Health Sciences, looking at N95 mask standards through an equity, diversity and inclusion lens.

Are you going to wear a mask? Learn More
November 15, 2022
Local epidemiologist says the government strongly recommending wearing masks ‘will not be enough to get Ontarians to wear masks again’

A few things you might not know about masking Learn More
Information Morning – Saint John with Julia Wright
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McMaster opens Centre of Excellence to advance personal protective equipment in Canada
June 29, 2020

McMaster Centre of Excellence receives $1.2M to advance Canadian-made personal protective equipment
January 26, 2021

To prevent millions more masks in landfills, McMaster researchers develop a way to recycle them
February 3, 2021

McMaster researchers support the development of game-changing technology to prevent indoor virus spread
October 7, 2022
CEPEM – Contact Us
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Dr. P. Ravi Selvaganapathy
Distinguished Engineering Professor, Canada Research Chair in Biomicrofluidics (laureate)
Co-Director – McMaster School of Biomedical Engineering

Dr. Rakesh Sahu
Adjunct Assistant Professor in Materials Science and Engineering