RESERVIST (2020-2023)

During the first wave of the pandemic, the world faced a severe shortage of various textile protective equipment such as face masks, medical gowns, and body bags. To avoid similar situations during future events, the H2020 project Reservist targeted re-designing textile protective equipment for production via alternative lines.

The approach was to set up so-called ‘reservist cells’, that in times of crises can be activated within 48 hours to switch to produce the necessary products and services. The concept started from what is currently used in the military environment or also in humanitarian relief, where ‘rapid response teams' are constantly on standby, ready to be activated in case of a need. The basis was the RESERVIST network, a wide group of actors (companies, RTDs, enablers,… but also end-users) linked to providing medical equipment.