Fitness Industry Roundup: Supplies, PPE & Antibody Testing

The fitness industry has been a hot spot for innovation—even through a crisis.

As we’ve seen in previous Fitness Industry Roundups, manufacturers have quickly shifted their facilities into making personal protective equipment to donate to local hospitals, and health clubs turned into backup medical facilities.

Here are more companies that are using their resources, leadership, and expertise to help communities get through the coronavirus crisis.

Precor Volunteers to Make Masks for Local Hospitals

In a LinkedIn post, Precor reported that members of its Greensboro, NC, team have stepped up to the plate to help amid the coronavirus pandemic. They are working to produce 100 masks a day to give to local hospitals, retirement communities, and police departments. Members of the Precor team have brought in materials from home and have been recruiting family members to help get the design of the mask as effective as possible. “Thank you, Rodney, Yvette, Rick, and Lou, our team behind the masks—you are truly the heart and soul of Precor, and we will all get through this together!” the company wrote on LinkedIn.

Take a look at the LinkedIn Post.

Mountainside Fitness Provides Antibody Testing at Several Locations

Mountainside Fitness opened up the parking lots of several of its Greater Phoenix, AZ, locations in order to provide drive-up location for COVID-19 antibody testing, according to its website. Working with Patients Choice Laboratories, the tests—with results available in 24 to 48 hours—include a blood draw and are performed while staying in the car. All Arizona residents were able to register via Mountainside Fitness’ website to get tested. In addition, Tom Hatten, owner of Mountainside Fitness, donated $100,000 to the coronavirus relief fund set up by the governor’s office “to really go out and help all the front-line efforts for the coronavirus and what we’re all dealing with today,” he said.

Stay up-to-date with what Mountainside Fitness is doing for the community.

The Edge Fitness Clubs Donates Supplies to Health Care Workers

Although the Orange, CT-based Edge Fitness Clubs are currently closed, it has not stopped the company from helping those affected by coronavirus. According to Patch, The Edge Fitness Clubs, in collaboration with its cleaning company Diversified Building Services, recently donated cleaning supplies to Yale New Haven Health System to provide healthcare workers necessary and often hard-to-find items. The supplies—enough to fill an entire box truck—were distributed throughout Connecticut to several hospitals. Among the donation was 48 boxes of gloves, 172 large rolls of disinfecting wipes, 76 cans of Lysol spray, two cases disinfectant spray concentrate plus bottles, and two cases of a strong disinfectant cleaner. To join in on The Edge Fitness Clubs’ efforts, email donationsppe@ynhh.org.

Learn more about Edge Fitness’ efforts.

Rowing Company Uses Connections to Provide PPEs

Concept2, a rowing machine manufacturer based in Vermont, tapped into their supply chain connections to procure half a million masks, according to the company. After the shipping boxes arrived, the company jumped into donating the three-layer face masks to local healthcare facilities, grocery stores, and other organizations in need. At first, the company was planning to shift its facility into making personal protective equipment, but was unable to receive necessary materials from overseas, Concept2 told Row2k.com. But their overseas contact was able to offer already finished face masks. “We called healthcare providers in the area and asked if that's the kind of mask they would be interested in, and they said yes, so we placed an order that day to get something in the works,” Braun said. Now Concept2 is sharing its connections with another Vermont-based company, Generator, to help make face shields using 3D printers.

Concept2's Trevor Braun shares the whole story.

Health Club Operators Come Together in IHRSA Forum

Health club owners and operators, suppliers, and other industry professionals are asking questions and sharing best practices in the IHRSA Forum—a new space where those in the industry can discuss topics concerning their business. Be at the center of conversation on a variety of coronavirus-related topics, from cleaning and safety to strategy and finance. To access the forum, all you need is an IHRSA Account, which you can create for free. Once logged in, share how your fitness business has been helping the community, as well as your expertise, thoughts, and ideas with colleagues from around the globe.

Access the IHRSA Forum.