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Technology addresses face-to-face meetings
15 July 2021
THE RETURN of office workers presents a new challenge to businesses seeking to protect their staff and visitors from the risks posed by SARS-CoV-2, its variants, and other microbiological hazards.
Coronaviruses, and other airborne pathogens, spread when people either inhale infectious particles or touch infected surfaces and then touch their face. Contact transmission can be reduced by frequent hand washing and by treating surfaces with wipes or fogging with disinfectant. Airborne transmission can be reduced by ventilation, but even if these measures are in place, an infected person can quickly contaminate the air in a meeting room.
Following the Covid pandemic it is likely that office staff with cold or flu-like symptoms will stay away from work, so the main risk will be from asymptomatic people. Instead of coughing larger particles, it is likely that these infectious individuals will unknowingly exhale small viral aerosols. Studies of cough aerosols have shown striking similarities in aerosol size distributions, with a predominance of pathogens in small particles (<5 μm), which settle less readily and are easily inhaled.
Meeting-Air has a 360-degree inlet at the base which draws air through 2.8m2 of medical grade (H14) pleated HEPA filter which removes all particles over 0.3µm. There are three speed settings – the two lower speeds are designed to minimise disturbance during a meeting, and a third ‘boost’ speed (up to 250m3/hour) is available for removing excess aerosols before or after a meeting.
Summarising, Keith says: “The Covid pandemic has highlighted the need for microbiological risks to be included in Health & Safety policies, and whilst new disinfection procedures, including hand washing, decontamination routines, ventilation and social distancing will all play important roles; meeting rooms and offices represent an ideal opportunity for disease transmission, unless technology such as Meeting-Air is deployed.
Bed-Air Ltd is a UK manufacturer of innovative indoor air quality solutions. Established in 2018, the company’s initial products were designed for healthcare environments, helping to isolate infectious patients whilst protecting staff and visitors.
The technology behind these products has benefited from decades of experience in the development of air quality solutions to meet the highest performance requirements.
Prompted by the Covid-19 pandemic, the company has expanded its product portfolio beyond the healthcare sector to bring the same air quality and infection prevention advantages to office environments.
For more information visit www.safe-airuk.com
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