Public and private partners in Maryland are testing an oven they say can sterilize up to 7,000 medical masks every hour to help address shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE).

The oven was developed by researches at the University of Maryland, working with Maryland companies such as Burch Oil and Triton Steel, according a story from NBC Washington.

The university’s doctors are already interested in using the technology, called a “heat sanitation module,” and the researchers are hearing from other hospitals, too.

“For everybody out there that’s a doctor or a nurse or somebody that has to be going into work every day scared, there are people that are working on helping you,” said Tommy Luginbill, director of the university’s Tech Port. “And they might not be the people you expect.”

Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Ryan M. Breeden