Coronavirus
Technology Solutions
Sequentially
Cleaner Space
Progression
Suppliers of HHS
Mask Purchases
for Community
Health Centers
Not Yet Revealed
COVID Can
Survive on
Fabric for 72
Hours
CDC Study Shows
Double Mask With
Tight Fit can be
95% Effective
New York Office
Buildings will
Incorporate
Healthier
Designs in the
Future
________________________________________________________________________
The coronavirus,
cleanroom, and
indoor air
technologies
have merged to
create what
could be labeled
The Sequentially
Cleaner Space
Progression. It
started in the
cleanroom
industry where
instead of one
large Class 10
cleanroom you
now have a Class
1 cleanroom
within a Class
10,000
Restricted
Access Barrier
System (RABS)
within a Class
100,000
cleanroom. The
pharmaceutical
manufacturer
owning this
facility has
probably
surrounded it
with space that
because of COVID
has been
upgraded
to MERV 13
filters. The
office workers
are also wearing
masks.
So the building
air will be
relatively clean
compared to the
outside air. The
average outside
air is estimated
as ISO 9 at
1,000,000
particles 0.5
microns and
larger per cubic
foot.
Most people will
have difficulty
assimilating the
fact that they
breathe in 1
million
particles in
every cubic foot
of air inhaled.
This
translates into
7.5 million
particles per
minute
for the
average person
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This is not the
air quality you
find in Beijing
or Mumbai or in
California in
the wildfire
season. In these
locations
people
are inhaling
as much
as 100 million
particles per
minute.
they rely
on the
protection of
masks while
outside and on
building HVAC
and high
efficiency air
filters when
inside.
Sequentially
Cleaner Space
Progression
The coronavirus
pandemic will
end but building
owners are now
well aware of
the benefits of
healthy air.
There is a major
campaign
involving
celebrities
preaching
healthy air for
buildings. The
result is likely
to be continuing
use and
evolution of a
Sequentially
Cleaner Space
Progression.
Suppliers of HHS
Mask Purchases
for Community
Health Centers
Not Yet Revealed
The new mask
purchase is far
less than the
one back in May.
We know that the
masks will be
relatively
efficient and
washable. They
will be packed
two per bag. The
cost will
roughly be $3
per mask and the
volume will be
25 million
masks.
This will
be entirely
different from
the one last
May. But here
are the details
on this earlier
purchase. The masks
were purchased
to “mitigate”
the transmission
of Covid-19 as
stay-at-home
orders are
lifted,
according to the
contracts, which
were awarded May
8.
Contracts were
awarded to HanesBrands
Inc. for $322
million; San
Mar Corp. for
$217 million; Parkdale
Advanced
Materials Inc. for
$60 million; Beverly
Knits Inc. for
$43 million; America
Knits for
$1.68 million;
and American
Giant for
$1.27 million. The HHS,
Federal
Emergency
Management
Agency, and the
Cybersecurity
and
Infrastructure
and Security
Agency (CISA)
are distributing
up to 650
million cloth
face coverings
to
infrastructure
workers, first
responders, and
food producers,
an HHS
spokesperson
said in a
statement. The federal
government has
distributed 90
million face
coverings so
far, the HHS
spokesperson
said. FEMA and
the HHS are also
providing face
coverings to
federal
agencies, the
spokesperson
added. Distribution
is based on the
CISA’s analysis
of priority
infrastructure
sectors, the HHS
spokesperson
said. Hanes went on
to generate
mask
revenue of $1
billion in 2020.
However, in
February it
announced that
it would exit
the mask
business.
COVID Can
Survive on
Fabric for 72
Hours
A new
study has
found that the
novel
coronavirus can
survive on some
forms of fabric
and transmit to
other surfaces
for up to 72
hours in a
laboratory
setting.
The study,
conducted by
researchers at
the De Montfort
University (DMU)
in Leicester,
U.K., reported
that traces of
the coronavirus
can remain
infectious on
polyester,
polycotton, and
100 per cent
cotton for up to
three days.
"When the
pandemic first
started, there
was very little
understanding of
how long
coronavirus
could survive on
textiles," lead
researchers and
DMU
microbiologist
Dr. Katie Laird
said in a press
release.
To find this
out, researchers
added droplets
of a model
coronavirus
called
HCoV-OC43, which
they reported
has a "very
similar
structure and
survival
pattern" to
SARS-CoV-2, the
virus that
causes COVID-19,
to the three
types of fabric.
The researchers
then monitored
the virus on
each material
for 72 hours in
a lab-controlled
setting.
The study, which
is currently
under
peer-review,
reported that
polyester posed
the highest risk
for transmission
of the virus,
with infectious
particles still
present on the
fabric after
three days.
With 100 per
cent cotton
fabric,
researchers
reported that
the virus lasted
for 24 hours
while it only
survived for six
hours on
polycotton.
Researchers also
evaluated the
"most reliable
wash method" for
removing the
virus on these
materials.
Using 100
percent cotton,
the researchers
conducted
multiple tests
using different
water
temperatures and
wash methods,
including
domestic washing
machines,
industrial
washing
machines,
hospital washing
machines, and an
ozone or highly
reactive gas
wash system.
The study found
that the
“agitation and
dilution effect
of the water” in
all of these
washing machines
was enough to
remove the
virus.
However,
researchers
noted that when
the textiles
were soiled with
an artificial
saliva
containing the
virus, mimicking
the risk of
spread from an
infected
person’s mouth,
they reported
that traces of
the virus
survived after
going through a
domestic washing
machine.
In this case,
the study said
it was only when
researchers
added a
detergent and
increased the
water
temperature that
the virus was
"completely
eliminated."
According to the
study, the virus
was stable in
water up to 60
C, but became
inactivated at
67 C.
The researchers
also evaluated
whether the
fabrics posed a
cross-contamination
risk during
washing.
The team
evaluated this
by placing clean
clothes in the
same wash as
uniforms
contaminated
with the virus.
They found that
"all wash
systems" removed
the virus and
there was "no
risk of the
other items
being
contaminated."
Despite this,
Laird said the
contaminated
clothes still
pose a threat to
health-care
workers prior to
being washed by
transferring to
other surfaces
if they are
brought home.
"While we can
see from the
research that
washing these
materials at a
high
temperature,
even in a
domestic washing
machine, does
remove the
virus, it does
not eliminate
the risk of the
contaminated
clothing leaving
traces of
coronavirus on
other surfaces
in the home or
car before they
are washed,"
Laird said in
the release.
In response, she
has recommended
to the U.K.
government that
health-care
staff not take
their uniforms
home and instead
have them
laundered in
hospitals or by
an industrial
laundry.
"These wash
methods are
regulated and
nurses and
health-care
workers do not
have to worry
about
potentially
taking the virus
home," Laird
said.
CDC Study Shows
Double Mask With
Tight Fit can be
95% Effective
The Centers for
Disease Control
and Prevention released
a study last
month that
indicates
wearing a fitted
cloth mask over
a medical
procedure mask is
proven to offer
more protection
against the
coronavirus.
During lab
testing, the CDC
simulated a
person coughing
by producing
aerosols from a
mouthpiece. The
experiment
showed that
double-masking
blocked 85.4% of
cough particles,
while being
proven to be 95%
effective when
both parties are
double-masked.
As for wearing a
single mask, the
study showed
that a cloth
mask alone
blocked 51.4% of
cough particles,
while a medical
procedure mask
blocked 56.1% of
cough particles.
Not all face
masks should be
layered though.
The CDC says
layering N95
and KN95
masks with
other kinds of
masks would
restrict airflow
and cause carbon
dioxide to build
up, according to
a report
by The Seattle
Times.
N95 and KN95 masks
both filter out
at least 95% of
particles in the
air when worn
alone, the
report says. The
main difference
between the two
are KN95 masks
are made in
China and are
not tested by
The National
Institute for
Occupational
Safety and
Health (NIOSH),
which is located
in the United
States.
High School In
York PA Starts
on $100 Million
Upgrade
Northeastern
High School in
York County is
about to take a
big leap from
the 1950s right
into the 21st
Century.
Phase 1 of a
three-part
renovation
project that is
estimated to
cost close to
$100 million
will begin in
earnest on June
8, according to
high school
principal Matt
Gay. The school
board approved
the first phase
and accepted
bids at a recent
meeting.
Lobar, Inc. will
handle the bulk
of the first
phase, winning
the general
construction and
electrical
contracts for a
total of just
over $21
million.
Frey-Lutz Corp.
won the HVAC
contract for
$5.2 million,
Jay R. Reynolds
won the plumbing
contract for
just under $1.6
million, and SA
Comunale won the
fire protection
contract for
$342,195.
Geller and Gay
said this
project has been
years in the
making.
Officials looked
at a new build
vs. two types of
renovations
before deciding
this three-phase
project was the
best way to go.
The other
renovation plan
added a second
floor to the
existing
building, which
opened in 1956.
The biggest
obstacle against
a new building
was land. A new
high school
wouldn’t fit on
the current
property, so the
district would
have had to
purchase a plot
of land.
Approximately 30
classrooms will
undergo
renovations,
including
focused lighting
with dimmer
switches.
Science rooms
will be enlarged
and the plumbing
improved.
Five external
classrooms will
be used while
the building's
six science
rooms are
renovated. They
are specifically
for teaching
science, so they
are larger and
are equipped
differently than
regular modular
classrooms.
Contractors will
install sub
levels to house
the school’s new
HVAC system that
will replace the
two systems that
now heat and
cool the high
school.
The high school
is the last of
the district’s
eight schools to
be renovated or
replaced.
Gay said the
main reason for
this is so it
can be funded as
a separate
project instead
of tying into
the first phase.
“And a different
board could say
no, and not do
the rest of it,”
Gay said. “This
project will
solve some of
the most
immediate needs.
We had to get
the mechanicals
piece done
before we could
do anything
else.”
New York Office
Buildings will
Incorporate
Healthier
Designs in the
Future
Durst has, for
decades, been at
the forefront of
the green
movement in real
estate. It’s not
virtue signaling
but, instead,
solid business
sense, he has
said. Cleaner
air attracts a
better class of
tenants willing
to pay higher
rents for Durst
buildings than
the less
progressive
buildings down
the street.
The company’s 4
Times Square,
also known
as One Five
One on 42nd
Street, helped
pioneer Times
Square’s
transformation
in the 1990s
from a seedy,
pornography-laden
zone to a
Dignified
tourist mecca.
It did that, in
part, with a
sensory system
called Aircuity
that constantly
monitors the air
inside a
building and
adjusts the
intake if too
much of a
certain
substance, such
as carbon
monoxide, turns
up.
Durst went on to
add a similar
system at 1
Bryant Park,
a.k.a. the Bank
of America
Tower. One
Bryant “went
even further,”
Durst said. “We
further filtered
the outside air.
This is
something we
recognized was
important way
before the
current crisis.”
Air systems
start with
outside air and
also recirculate
indoor air, said
Kathleen Owen,
president of
Cary, N.C.-based
Owen Air
Filtration
Consulting and a
member of
ASHRAE. Then,
the advanced
ones monitor the
outdoor air to
make sure it’s
not bringing in
noxious gases
and impurities;
but Owens said
that these more
advanced ones
are not very
common.
“Usually in
commercial
buildings, there
are temp sensors
that control
when the HVAC
runs,” she said,
referencing the
heaters and
air-conditioners
that keep
buildings
comfortable.
“Some buildings
have [air
quality]
sensors, but it
is not the
norm.”
There is a
“growing market
of companies”
making retrofits
to improve
indoor air, said
Joel Wheatley,
senior director
of engineering
and maintenance
for C&W
Services, the
facilities
services arm of
the commercial
real estate
services
firm Cushman &
Wakefield.
At 10 Grand
Central at 155
East 44th
Street, a fairly
typical Midtown
office building,
the air is
zapped by
ultraviolet
rays, goes
through a
bipolar
ionization
system, and is
finally sieved
through a MERV
13 filter.
Perhaps, the
most remarkable
thing about 10
Grand Central is
its tenant
roster, which
includes Dwayne
“The Rock”
Johnson’s
production
company and
international
news agency
Agence France-Presse.
It also won a
Pinnacle Award
for renovated
building of the
year from the
New York chapter
of the Building
Owners and
Managers
Association.
The U.S. Green
Building
Council, the
organization
behind the LEED
environmental
ratings for
buildings,
recommended
using MERV 13 or
14 filters,
according to an
article on the
association’s
website. A
properly
designed air
quality system
will filter out
the coronavirus
and, therefore,
be critical to
the reopening of
buildings,
including
schools, the
council said.
Workers in 10
Grand Central
can track the
air quality on
little read-out
screens posted
throughout the
building. While
a reporter was
there, the
number on the
screen ranged
from 5 to 12,
all acceptable
ranges. If it
got to 100, the
building’s
engineer said,
that would be
trouble. A male
wearing strong
cologne has been
known to make
the reading
jump. There is a
control room,
too, for
controlling the
air quality, but
it is off-site,
said Craig
Deitelzweig,
president and
CEO of Marx
Realty &
Improvement Co.,
the principal
owner and
operator of the
building.
One of the
innovations used
at 10 Grand
Central is
simply having
windows that
open and close,
something that’s
been hard to
find in the
increasingly
glassy towers
that have been
going up since
the 1950s.
When the meters
show the air is
edging toward
something less
than optimum,
one thing Marx
does is open
windows and
doors to the
outside.
“There’s nothing
like fresh air,”
Deitelzweig
said. “That’s
why outdoor
venues were
allowed to open
before inside
ones.”
This past week,
occupancy, in
terms of people
in 10 Grand
Central, was at
about 32
percent, he
said, a
high-water mark
for the crisis.
Lately, the
percentage has
been in the 20s,
he said.
Air quality is
also a top
selling point
for, perhaps,
the most
prominent — and,
certainly, the
largest — new
commercial real
estate
development in
America: Hudson
Yards on
Manhattan’s Far
West Side, which
includes several
million square
feet (and
counting) of
office space.
“We built Hudson
Yards to be as
future-proof as
possible, which
included having
best-in-class,
commercial-grade
MERV filters and
multiple points
for fresh air
intake offering
the
highest-quality
air, with 30
percent more
fresh air than a
typical
office,” Related
Companies,
Hudson Yards’
co-developer and
current
operator, said
in a statement.
The focus on
fresh air
indoors turned
out to be
prescient, the
company said.
“Pre-pandemic,
air quality
wasn’t top of
mind for many of
our office
tenants, but
today, it is
something their
employees are
increasingly
asking about and
a key factor in
making people
feel comfortable
returning to
their offices,”
Related said.
Cushman &
Wakefield’s
Wheatley said
that much of
this technology
is not new. In
fact,
ultraviolet
technology, as a
means to filter
out air
impurities, goes
back more than
100 years.
“For particles
that are too
small to be
filtered, even
by a MERV 13,
they’ll go right
through the
filters and come
back out,”
Wheatley said.
“So the
objective is to
make those
particles
larger.”
Manufacturers
say that bipolar
ionization can
deactivate
viruses, Owen,
the filtration
consultant,
said.
There could be a
“trade-off,”
however,
Wheatley said.
All these
techniques to
clean the air
take energy and
could raise
costs, he said.
Knowledge on how
to employ these
technologies
continues to
evolve. ASHRAE
is planning an
update in the
next few weeks
on the effect of
ultraviolet on
the virus. It is
believed that
the technique
has some
positive effect,
but just how
much and how to
employ it won’t
be known until
the ASHRAE study
is published,
Wheatley said.
“Even if it’s
not this
pandemic, it may
be the next, but
I think overall,
people are going
to have a better
understanding of
air quality
facilities,”
Wheatley said.
“I don’t think
we’ll ever go
back to the
standards of
[running] the
air through the
lowest filter
and [pushing] it
out and go
breathe it.
There will be a
more savvy
understanding of
how things
work.”
Until then,
there are the
government
guidelines as
well.
Owen, for her
part, cautioned
about relying on
machines to
protect against
COVID. She
instead advised
continuing to
wear a mask and
to practice
social
distancing till
the authorities
say it’s safe to
stop.
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