Signify (Euronext: LIGHT) presented Active Air, the latest Philips UV-C product innovation for air disinfection in professional applications and the first installations in Italy of its UV-C devices for air disinfection and surfaces. They are the to.market supermarket chain and the restaurant “La Premiata Trattoria Arlati” a historic Milanese trattoria since 1936. Both chose Philips UV-C disinfection devices to get back on track safely due to the pandemic.
Active Air allows quiet air disinfection while business activity continues underneath the device level. For this reason, it is suitable for busy public areas and a wide range of applications (such as kindergartens, schools, retails, hospitals, hospitality, offices, industries, gyms and restaurants) inactivating virus, including SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing the Covid-19. Micro-organisms such as viruses, bacteria, fungi and spores, do not survive the UV-C rays as these are very effective in breaking down the DNA of micro-organisms. They cannot replicate thus preventing their reproduction and proliferation. Philips UV-C Active Air is designed for simple and safe use, as UV-C rays are emitted exclusively within the device and do not spread into the environment to prevent unintended exposure. The air is then conveyed inside the apparatus by the integrated fans to be filtered and subjected to intense disinfection while ensuring that day-to-day business activities can continue underneath the area where the device is active, thus preventing a possible involuntary exposure. The sanitized air is then released and recirculated to ensure the well-being and safety of the people.
Active Air can also be installed in smaller rooms, optimized for low ceiling heights. Active Air completes the full range of Signify professional UV-C devices dedicated to air disinfection. The offered range includes Batten UV-C devices for disinfecting UV-C surfaces. After 35 years of experience in UV-C product and applications, Signify is now at the vanguard in this technology and investing in fighting the virus spread during the pandemic by offering concrete solutions.
Thanks to the tests conducted in collaboration with Boston University, Signify has also supported the scientific research demonstrating that UV-C light sources can inactivate SARS-CoV-2 responsible for Covid-19 in just a few seconds. Safely to restart the activities, the first installations of UV-C devices were made in Italy, particularly in the Retail and Hospitality sector. To.market supermarkets are the first in Italy to have Signify’s UV-C lamps installed to meet the growing need for disinfection. More specifically, some stores already have Philips UV-C Batten and Upper-Air devices installed for disinfecting the air, the surfaces and objects, such as shopping trolleys, shelves, checkouts, counters and more.
Instead, in the field of Hospitality, it is the historic Milanese restaurant “La Premiata Trattoria Arlati” that has installed Signify’s UV-C appliances, soon to reopen in total respect for the health and safety of employees and customers. Philips UV-C Active Air and Upper-Air have been installed inside the restaurant.
Despite the increased popularity of e-commerce forced by the pandemic, many Italians still prefer to purchase inside physical grocery stores. That leads to the traditional disadvantages of having to disentangle among the increasingly crowded lanes to make sure to find all the needed products and surrender to long queues at the cash desk, with the unpleasant possibility of contracting the virus while purchasing essential goods.
In this context, some tests conducted at the National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories (NEID) of the Boston University in the US gave results validating the effectiveness of Signify’s UV-C light sources to allow 99% neutralization of the SARS-CoV-2 virus present on surfaces with 6 seconds exposure time. A clear indication of how the emission of UV-C can be a valuable ally in the disinfection of environments. In the first phase, the installation of Philips UV-C devices will be carried out with the support of Signify in two of their shops in Milan, with the ultimate goal to install them across their entire chain of retail stores in the short term.
