Marian Customer Spotlight: First Defense Nasal Screens
At Marian, we are fortunate to have many amazingly inventive customers. In this post, we are highlighting an innovative customer whose product began as one man’s idea and is now experiencing worldwide growth. Marian is proud to be a long-term supplier partner to First Defense Nasal Screens.
Many highly successful products start with a brilliant idea and a highly motivated person behind that idea. For First Defense Nasal Screens™, that person was inventor, Joe Moore.
If you’re a fan of the ABC show Shark Tank, you may be familiar with the story of Joe and First Defense. Almost 9 years ago, Joe devised the concept for his breakthrough product, First Defense Nasal Screens™. These nasal screens are oval shaped adhesive patches with a fabric filter media. They are placed over the nostrils to protect against foreign airborne particles entering the nasal passage.
Moore was first inspired to develop this product following a severe allergy attack. As his research began, he found data suggesting a shocking number of deaths caused by pollutants and airborne contaminants like viruses, flus, bacteria, and chemicals. He also found that about 50% of Americans suffer from allergies and spend nearly $300 billion looking for a solution. Moore became determined to bring an external-use nasal screen to the market. This is where Marian joins the story…
First Defense Product Development with Marian Medical Division
Moore brought his concept to the Marian Medical team. Marian’s experienced engineers collaborated with Joe to further develop his design so that it was manufacturable and able to be patent protected. Working through many design meetings, product iterations, and trials, Moore and the Marian team achieved the final successful design that met Moore’s design goals.
The high level of engineering and capabilities is why I chose Marian in the first place.
Material Selection, Prototypes, and Trials
Marian has extensive experience manufacturing high-quality products with medical grade skin-safe materials. Our engineers recommended and sampled a variety of materials and based on Joe’s needs decided what they were looking for in a PSA and filter material.
- The pressure sensitive adhesive was required to stick to the skin securely, while also removable without causing trauma or irritation.
- The filter media should allow air to pass while filtering out dust, pollen, and other contaminants.
The Marian team leveraged strong relationships with raw material suppliers to recommend the best materials for the nasal screens. During this development process, Marian created prototypes of varying sizes, shapes, and component layers for evaluations and testing.
Quality Systems
Another key component to the development success was Marian’s ability to manufacture the product in our FDA Registered Facility with ISO 13458 Certification. This ensured that the product met important quality standards required by the healthcare market.
The Final Product
Marian engineers defined a precise process to manufacture the final packaged product at the highest level of quality while meeting all of the product and patent specifications. The final design included three sizes of nasal filters (S, M, L). Each size is supplied in pairs of two filters (one for each nostril) on a single sheet of coated paper. Seven sheets are packaged in a sealed pouch, which is printed with the instructions for use (IFU) in the language of its intended country of sale and application.
First Defense Nasal Screens were ready to go to market!
First Defense on Shark Tank
As Moore began to sell and promote his product, an opportunity arose to take his product to ABC’s hit show, Shark Tank. He decided to take the plunge and submitted an audition tape. The producers agreed that First Defense Nasal Screens were a great fit for the show and invited Joe to a taping.
Joe Moore appeared on Season 2 of ABC’s Shark Tank in 2011. Moore entered the Tank seeking a $500k investment in exchange for a 10% equity in his business. As he gave his pitch and demonstrated the nasal screens, the Sharks initially laughed at the product. However, they quickly changed their tune when Joe described his success thus far: sales of 1.7 million units and an international contract worth $8 million in future sales. Hearing this, the Sharks made various offers, including a lump sum $4 million dollars to purchase Joe’s company out right (the largest offer in Shark Tank history at this point!). However, Joe realized that his vision for First Defense Nasal Screens, and that of the Sharks, were very different. He ultimately turned down the offer.
Worldwide Growth
Even without the investment from The Sharks, First Defense has continued to see demand grow for the First Defense Nasal Screens™ worldwide.
As demand has increased, Marian has been supportive and agile. We have met the production volumes as they have changed, producing 13 different packages and languages, and manufacturing the product in three different sizes (S, M, L). Marian has also shared cost reductions with First Defense (and their customers) achieved through production efficiencies and raw material buying power.
Marian has helped me reduce cost and expand product sizes as demand for our product has grown.
First Defense and Marian in 2020
As of 2020, First Defense sells their nasal screen products in over 40 countries. Joe expects demand to increase significantly as the world fights to control the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Marian is ready and proud to partner with First Defense, providing excellence in engineering, production, service, and quality.
I have been able to grow my business internationally and offer a quality product from a respected manufacturer with the right certifications and such that allow us to meet standards others couldn’t have met.
To learn more about First Defense Nasal Screens and to purchase the product, visit their website: https://filteryourlife.com/
Kevin Pickett, Marian Medical Manufacturing Specialist, stands with the raw material that is ready for the nasal screen production as volumes ramp up in 2020.
This story was written with permission from Joe Moore and First Defense Nasal Screens International. We would like to thank them for their cooperation and valuable partnership.
