MOLINE, Ill. — Newly appointed Director of the Illinois Department of Agriculture Jerry Costello II recently called agriculture the “backbone of America”.

John Deere, an Illinois-based agricultural giant, gave credence to Costello’s words as the company is in the process of making 25,000 protective face shields, with supplies being ordered for the production of an additional 200,000 to be made at its Moline factory.

Deere acted in a response to a nationwide call for more personal protective equipment (PPE) amid the Covid-19 pandemic. The face shields will be distributed by factories in Deere’s network to meet the immediate needs of health care workers in local communities. The Moline factory normally manufactures planting equipment and precision agriculture solutions.

“We knew that we needed to do more to help the true heroes in the fight against this virus, and those are the front-line health care workers,” said David Ottavianelli, Deere director of strategic projections and labor relations. ‘Our employees wanted to do more for the local community, and we could not be prouder of their actions. They are the real stars.”

Currently, 15-20 employees are assembling the face shields. That number is expected to increase as the company acquires more raw materials.

The first 25,000 face shields will be delivered to 17 Deere factories in eight states as well as the company’s U.S. Deere-Hitachi factor for local distribution.

“We recognize this won’t meet all the need,” Ottavianelli said, “but we have additional orders in place to produce up to 200,000 more, and we continue to work on getting more material beyond that. Material is the key element in this entire process.”

The work began at the John Deere factory in Quad Cities. There factory manager Brad Russman started the manufacture process using a design from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Each face shield will incorporate a piece of clear plastic, a foam pad for one’s forehead and an elastic headband.

“We will be handling distribution centrally out of Moline to the factories across the country and then they will distribute locally to their health care providers and networks of their choice,” Russman said.

A company noted for its precision agricultural products has switched gears. Those in the ag field have certainly taken notice.

“Our supply management professionals searched and found new sources to acquire the material,” said Jen Hartmann, John Deere Director of Public Relations. “Our team members have been able to execute process in a day that would normally take months.

For the project, Deere consulted with the UAW, the Iowa Department of Homeland Security, and the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association.

“By working closely with the communities where our employees live and work, we can help support the needs we’ve identified close to home and, as the project expands, address additional, urgent needs across the country,” Deere CEO John May said in a release.