Coronavirus Technology Solutions
May 11, 2020
KLC Kinglandclean Provides Elevator Air
Purifying System with High Efficiency on the
Coronavirus
Ceiling HEPAs as an Alternative or Supplement to
Partitions
Restaurants can Learn from Airlines
Restaurants in Hong Kong Install Partitions and
take Other Measures to Mitigate the Virus
Restaurants in the U.S. Installing Glass
Partitions
Egg & Flour in Bay View Wisconsin also has
Installed Partitions
Goff Supplying Partitions at Restaurants
Thailand Restaurants Installing Plastic
Partitions
OSHA has Guidance for Restaurants to Mitigate
Virus
ASHRAE Advises that HVAC is a Solution not the
Problem
______________________________________________________________________________
KLC Kinglandclean Provides Elevator Air
Purifying System with High Efficiency on the
Coronavirus
The system uses an approximation of laminar
downflow of HEPA filtered air using a vertical
module on the wall of the elevator.
Purified air is discharged from the top of the
module and flows along the ceiling and then
downward.
It then
enters the intake near the floor of the
elevator.
The
efficiency of the filter with PTFE coating is in
the ULPA range u-15 which is higher than the
typical HEPA. This is important because new
evidence shows that the virus is traveling in
small aerosols. The virus size is close to 0.1
microns.
European Efficiency Ratings Based on Most
Penetrating Particle Size
The vertical module lends itself well to
elevators but would be equally well suited for
many enclosed spaces.
In our May 5 Alert we covered the KLC isolation
chamber. The company is a major supplier of air
purification products and is home based in
China. It focuses on air purification and
cleanroom equipment.
The elevator vertical module design
could be used in confined spaces but also
in partitioning non confined spaces.
For example a restaurant could segment
its dining area with partitions and include one
these filter modules in each section.
Since offices frequently already have
partitions the filter modules could be installed
with little labor cost.
Ceiling HEPAs as an Alternative or Supplement to
Partitions
As McIlvaine has documented in previous alerts
the partitions by themselves will be no more
effective on viruses than they would be on
cigarette smoke. So the additions of vertical
filter modules would make the restaurant quite
safe. There could be three or four tables in one
partitioned area as long as the air flow
patterns are optimized.
Another alternative is ceiling filters and
downward laminar flow. With HEPA filters placed
strategically in the ceiling and returns located
at floor level around the periphery and between
the cashier and customer the clean air flow will
even more effective than if partitions were
utilized.
Restaurants can Learn from Airlines
Most airlines have efficient HEPA filters and
downward relatively laminar air flow around
passengers. In a previous Alert we showed plans
to also add partitions. The result will be
relatively safe eating and travel for
passengers. So the restaurants can learn from
the airlines.
Restaurants in Hong Kong Install Partitions and
take Other Measures to Mitigate the Virus
Restaurants in Hong Kong are installing some
plastic partitions. There is often someone at
the door to check temperatures. Masks and other
PPE are worn by the restaurant workers.
Procedures at several restaurants are
shown in the following
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-Gn_vTyshE
Restaurants in the U.S. Installing Glass
Partitions
Restaurants are installing glass partitions
which may do more harm than good. They may
protect
others from a sneezer but everyone
breathes. New evidence shows that breath
generates droplets with virus which like
cigarette smoke will move with air currents.
Sapore Italiano Ristorante
in California is preparing for dine in customers
with a number of changes including glass
partitions between tables.
Beyond the glass barriers, Durzo is switching to
paper menus, paper napkins, and other material
meant for one-time-use.
Customers will see staff in masks and gloves and
notice staggered reservations. "I'm going to
seat the customer like 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Then 6
p.m. to 7:30 p.m., and 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., 9:30
p.m.," Durzo explained.
He's also
introducing no-contact payment.
Michael Stewart, who
owns 717 South and Ava, in Tampa Fla ,
said those restaurants had undergone significant
physical restructuring inside, including glass
partitions between booths. And 717 South is
taking advantage of a newly-launched economic
recovery plan that temporarily allows
restaurants to expand their outdoor seating into
areas that otherwise would be considered public
rights-of-way, like sidewalks or alleys, as well
as privately owned parking facilities.
Other safety measures taken at the restaurants
include single-use menus and single-use paper
tablecloth toppings, sanitizing stations
throughout and staff that are required to do
temperature checks and health screenings before
clocking in.
Egg & Flour in Bay View Wisconsin also has
Installed Partitions
“We were ready to go,” said Adam Pawlak,
Executive Chef and owner of Egg & Flour Pasta
Bar.
Adam says they’ve kept busy getting ready for
the day they can reopen by installing personal
safety partitions for customers made of clear
PVC and hung from the ceiling.
“Airborne contaminants - a sneeze, a cough,
whatever that may be, is going to be stopped by
the safety partition,” says Tony Goff, president
of Goff Enterprises and Egg & Flour restaurant
partner.
Goff Enterprises usually does industrial space
partitioning for the automotive, pharmaceutical,
and food processing industries, but Tony says
this product is the first of its kind in any
restaurant anywhere and is easy to install and
maintain. “When we heard that people need to
remain separate, as in keep 6 ft apart, we
thought we could really help with creating the
separation without actually having people be
physically separated,” said Goff.
Once they’re back in the restaurant, in addition
to regular cleaning and sanitizing, customers
will not only stand six feet apart due to
stickers on the floor, but because of the
partitions, they’ll be able to avoid any contact
with all other people except for the person who
hands them their pasta. They hope this, in
addition to everything they do, helps show their
clientele they care and are ready to come back
safer and stronger than ever.
“With these partitions they can still enjoy the
space, and have fun, and have a night out, and
feel like they can relax and enjoy themselves
instead of coming in here with a mask, getting
it to go, and running out right away,” said
Pawlak.
“It’s just important to our company to get
everyone back to some semblance of new normal as
quickly and as safely as possible,” said Goff.
“And that’s what this product is all about.” Egg
& Flour doesn’t yet have a set reopen date, but
they say that when they do, they hope the
community comes out to support them, knowing
they’ll be safe.
Goff Supplying Partitions at Restaurants
Complying with OSHA's latest guidelines on
preparing spaces for COVD-19, Goff partitions
safely provide a physical barrier to reduce
exposure to hazards without relying on worker or
visitor behavior alone.
The Personal Safety Partitions help
prevent the spread of airborne contaminants and
viruses to provide guests or employees a safe
and comfortable space to live, dine or work in.
The following partitions if accompanied by
laminar flow HEPA filtered air would be very
protective.
https://landing.goffsenterprises.com/personal-safety-partition
Thailand Restaurants Installing Plastic
Partitions
Thailand has been more successful than the U.S
at curbing COVID cases. Part of the reason is
protective measures taken by restaurants.
A waiter in a face shield serves a customer
while people eat in between plastic partitions,
set up to contain the spread of COVID-19, at a
hotpot restaurant in Bangkok.
OSHA has Guidance for Restaurants to Mitigate
Virus
For restaurants’
curbside pickup and takeout operations,
OSHA
advises:
ASHRAE Advises that HVAC is a Solution not the
Problem
Heating, ventilation and air-conditioning
filters, along with other strategies, help to
reduce the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus
that causes COVID-19, while removing other air
contaminants that may have health effects.
That’s according to ASHRAE, which has reacted to
what it called “widening false statements
surrounding HVAC systems.”
“ASHRAE officially opposes the advice not to run
residential or commercial HVAC systems and
asserts that keeping air conditioners on during
this time can help control the spread of the
virus,” the group stated. ASHRAE has published two
statements to define guidance on managing the
spread of SARS-CoV-2 as it relates to the
operation and maintenance of HVAC systems in
buildings. With regards to airborne transmission
of SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19, ASHRAE stated the
following: “Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 through
the air is sufficiently likely that airborne
exposure to the virus should be controlled.
Changes to building operations, including the
operation of heating, ventilating, and
air-conditioning systems, can reduce airborne
exposures.”
In its second statement, on the operation of
HVAC system, to reduce SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19
transmission, ASHRAE noted that the ventilation
and filtration provided by HVAC systems can
reduce the airborne concentration of SARS-CoV-2,
thereby reducing the risk of transmission
through the air.
“In general, disabling of heating, ventilating,
and air-conditioning systems is not a
recommended measure to reduce the transmission
of the virus,” ASHRAE continued. ASHRAE has
created the Epidemic
Task Force,
comprised of leading experts to address the
relationship between the spread of disease and
HVAC in buildings during of the current pandemic
and future epidemics.
“In light of the current global pandemic, it’s
critically important that ASHRAE responds with
guidance on mitigating the transmission of the
virus, as well as ventilation and filtration
recommendations,” said 2019-20 ASHRAE president
Darryl K. Boyce, P.Eng. “ASHRAE has a
significant role to play in ensuring safe and
healthy building environments and these
statements offer the expert strategies needed at
this time.”
Expanded guidance is available on ASHRAE’s
COVID-19 Resources webpage at ashrae.org/COVID19.
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