Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Case Study: Airline and Retail Catering Kitchen

ClorDiSys Solutions has a wide range of experience within the food industry, having worked in Ready-to-Eat (RTE) facilities, dairy facilities, commercial kitchens, pet food facilities, and beverage plants. Biodecontamination can take place for a variety of applications. Recently, our Decontamination Services team performed a decontamination at a catering kitchen for airlines and airport retail locations.  The facility was fighting some positive environmental results and needed to regain control.  Due to the busy nature of their operation, limiting the stoppage of production was extremely important.  The chlorine dioxide gas process requires the environment to be fully sealed off from surrounding areas for safety.  The Cold Food Production Area was able to be sealed off quickly, while the Hot Food Kitchen required a much greater level of attention in order to properly seal it off from surrounding areas.  With this in mind, a two-tiered approach was taken in order to balance efficacy and treatment times.  Within the Cold Food Production Area, chlorine dioxide gas was utilized to provide a 6-log sterilization level kill of all surfaces within the space.  The Hot Food Kitchen would sanitized by fogging the area with a liquid chlorine dioxide solution.  This process does not require as tight of a seal, in turn requiring less set-up time.  This allowed both areas to be treated within the allotted downtime, while still providing an adequate level of treatment.  Environmental monitoring results taken after the treatment came back negative, and the chlorine dioxide decontamination was shown to be successful.

Generally speaking, if the space can be sealed, it can be decontaminated. If you have a service project you'd like to explore, contact us here.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Case Study: Tented Equipment in a Laboratory

ClorDiSys provides biodecontamination services for routine or single-time events, specializing in contamination prevention and response. Last week, our Decontamination Service team was in the Midwest to perform a decon at a research facility.  Our team was brought in to decontaminate a CliniMACS Prodigy® Instrument manufactured by Miltenyi Biotec.  The CliniMACS Prodigy allows for automated cell processing within a closed system and was shipped to the research facility to be used for a contract research project within their laboratory.  The research facility required the decontamination to take place to ensure that the incoming device would be sterile before entering the laboratory.  Being a small device, the CliniMACS Prodigy was moved into an airlock and tented for decontamination.  Tenting the CliniMACS Prodigy took approximately 20 minutes, and the decontamination started shortly thereafter.  The decontamination took a total of 2 hours. After which, the chlorine dioxide gas was removed using a carbon scrubber.  Once complete, the tent was removed from the CliniMACS Prodigy, and it was safe to be brought into the laboratory.

ClorDiSys' chlorine dioxide gas technology allows for a complete decontamination of your facility, room, equipment, or ductwork with minimal downtime. View a sample of some other decontamination service projects here, and Request a Decontamination Service Quote if you have a project you'd like to explore.

Monday, September 9, 2019

AirGlow: In-duct Ultraviolet Light Disinfection System

AirGlow™ is an in-duct ultraviolet light disinfection system that can be installed in any HVAC system. Ultraviolet light (UV) is a specific part of the electromagnetic spectrum of light that offers bactericidal effects. When a micro-organism is exposed to UV-C, the nuclei of the cells are altered due to photolytic processes. This process prevents further replication and causes cell death. As air passes the quartz glass UV-C bulbs of the AirGlow, the travelling air is disinfected, and harmful organisms that may have been present are killed. This provides continuous disinfection without special attention or risk of exposure to people in room.

The AirGlow can be utilized for two distinct purposes. To help reduce and/or eliminate the growth of bacteria, mold and spores as well as prevent the spread of airborne transmitted diseases, the AirGlow would be positioned parallel to the airflow to maximize contact time on the organisms. To improve energy efficiency, the AirGlow would be positioned parallel to the cooling coils. Used in this configuration, biofilm production on the coils is prevented. Biofilms are known to increase static pressure and cause the HVAC system to work harder and less efficient. Clean coils can deliver a 30% increase in cooling capacity which in turn reduces energy consumption and costs.

The AirGlow is constructed of corrosion-resistant stainless steel, and it is offered in a variety of sizes. The following information is required to size an ultraviolet system for duct air treatment:
Duct or plenum size
Length of compartment or duct where AirGlow is to be installed
Air speed typically provided in cfm (cubic feet per minute)
Approximate air temperature

If you are interested in learning more about the AirGlow™ and how it can benefit your company’s HVAC, call ClorDiSys at (908) 236-4100. If you would like more information about sizes and pricing, request a quote here.