AGAWAM - An Agawam resident is using his own 3D printer to help first responders relieve pain caused by wearing masks continuously.

 Stephen Roth told Reminder Publishing he first came up with the idea to print mask extenders after a friend shared a company that was making a similar product. The company, he said, was charging $8 per extender, which he didn’t agree with.

“To print them costs 25 cents a piece, first responders shouldn’t be charged,” he said.

Within the first few days of printing the extenders, Roth said he was able to produce around 150 of them. In a single day, he estimated he was able to produce around 50 extenders, depending on his schedule.

He explained the process of 3D printing and said it begins first by designing the program for the design that was being printed. Roth said once the program has been put into the printer and a code is set, the filament that makes the product is heated up and begins the process.

Roth said he plans to continue making mask extenders for first responders throughout the pandemic, and doesn’t anticipate charging for them. “I’m not going to ever charge for them, I think it’s just wrong to do,” he said. He said so far he had printed 25 for an Intensive Care Unit, and 90 extenders for the sheriff’s department.

While the masks are free to those who need them, they must be picked up as Roth said he doesn’t “have the time to be delivering” them. Additionally, he said, he is not shipping them as “shipping stuff turns into a headache.”

Instead, the extenders are available for local pickup. He said all pickups are contact free and sanitary. Anyone in need of a mask extender should contact Roth via Facebook.