NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE, USA - Animax Designs, Inc., better known as an industry leader and innovator in creating animatronic and interactive characters for leading theme parks and other location-based entertainment across the globe, is stepping up to help fight against COVID-19. With the Coronavirus pandemic sweeping the globe, the Nashville-based company has added to their character-building efforts to also produce protective face shields and masks for medical professionals.
As concerns continued to grow across the country and especially in the local Nashville, Tennessee community, Animax quickly saw an opportunity to leverage their existing manufacturing equipment (including 3D printing capabilities) and innovative and motivated team to make a difference – helping the men and women on the front lines.
“I think this initiative fits very well with our purpose. We are in business to bring smiles to faces around the world. When children see these beloved characters literally coming to life in front of their eyes, it transports them into their own fantastical dream world,” said Chuck Fawcett, President & CEO of Animax Designs, “One of my favorite things is to watch the reaction of parents when they see this excitement in their children. Now many of those same parents are stepping up to the plate directly in the face of danger. They are on the front lines helping to care for and protect our community. We have an amazing opportunity to help protect those same parents so that when this is all over, they can once again see the smiles on their children’s faces,” Fawcett added.
The company began researching the various equipment needs of medical professionals and quickly realized that the equipment, processes, and skillsets for creating advanced animatronics could be used to create medical-grade personal protection equipment.
The state-of-the-art 3D printing technology used to produce components for multi-axis animatronics are now also being used to produce the components needed to make the face shields. Along with 3D printing the headpieces for the face shields, the company has also made silicone molds that can produce additional resin cast face shield components alongside the machine shop which is cutting clear plastic shields on industrial CNC tables as fast as the plastic can be sourced. Along with face shields, the in-house costuming shop is producing tri-layer facemasks that can be N95 rated by slipping a filter into a special pocket.
“In all honesty, we are doing this because it is simply the right thing to do. We have the equipment, the skills and most importantly a team of amazing people that all want to give back. The community of Nashville has supported Animax as our home for over 30 years. Now this is our chance to say thank you and perhaps save some lives!”
-Chuck Fawcett, President & CEO of Animax Designs
To reinforce Animax Designs’ efforts, the company has received “essential employee” status from the State of Tennessee to ensure that the company can continue to produce essential equipment throughout the pandemic. The combined efforts of the company will enable the production of approximately 500 - 600 protective face shields and facemasks each week for medical professionals to use on the frontlines to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
For more information visit www.animaxdesigns.com/whats-new or to schedule an interview, contact Jay Rottinghaus at j.rottinghaus@animaxdesigns.com or (513) 479-7280.
ABOUT ANIMAX DESIGNS
Animax Designs, headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, USA, and a subsidiary of Cityneon Holdings, creates animatronic and interactive characters, animated costumes, and puppets utilizing leading-edge technology and superior craftsmanship. With over 160 highly skilled employees, Animax serves some of the largest operators in the world in the themed entertainment, live attractions, location-based entertainment, commercial, film, and television industries. For more information, visit www.animaxdesigns.com.
ABOUT CITYNEON HOLDINGS
With its global reach and international partnerships, Cityneon has the capability to serve its clients anywhere in the world. Cityneon was listed on the Mainboard of the Singapore Stock Exchange since 2005, and was privatized on February 2019 by West Knighton Limited, a company wholly owned by Cityneon’s Executive Chairman and Group CEO Ron Tan together with Hong Kong veteran entrepreneur and investor Johnson Ko Chun Shun. Johnson is a capital markets veteran and has held controlling interests and directorships in many listed companies. In May 2019, Cityneon welcomed CITIC Capital as a new shareholder, who holds approximately 10% shares in Cityneon. CITIC Capital is part of CITIC Group, one of China’s largest conglomerates, and has over US$25b of assets under its management across 100 funds and investment products globally. Other institutional shareholders of the Group include EDBI - a Singapore government-linked global investor, and Pavilion Capital - a Singapore-based investment institution which focuses on private equity investments, that made strategic investments in August and October 2019 respectively, to support the Group's further expansion globally. For more information, please visit www.cityneongroup.com.
