The Self-Disinfecting Room is Coming to an Office Near You

LDS Signify UV 400

June 21, 2021

Imagine a self-contained office space. One that is smart enough to disinfect itself ahead of anyone using it so that it is virus and bacteria-free. Sounds too good to be true? Well, it actually exists, and it could be coming to an office near you.

Muotolevy is a Finnish company that specializes in designing and installing soundproof wall systems and ceilings inside offices and other buildings. It is also well known for its range of self-contained cube-shaped pods used as focus rooms and small meeting rooms.

Branded ‘Module’, the pods offer acoustic ambience, ventilation for fresh air and indirect glare-free lighting. Now, the company’s new Module Hygiene Collection has something very special up its sleeve. The pods can disinfect themselves in between use thanks to UV-C disinfection lamps from Signify that are incorporated within the Module system.

Kimmo Sundström, Planning Director at Muotolevy, extolled the virtues of the company’s latest innovation: “UV-C light helps to disinfect air and exposed surfaces inside the pods within a five-minute disinfection cycle. UV-C light has generally been shown to inactivate every virus and bacteria tested so far in scientific studies,1 and Signify’s UV-C lamps have been proven to inactivate the SARS CoV-2 coronavirus.”2

The power of UV-C lighting for disinfection is well known with applications widely tested in the 1930s and 1940s. With the COVID-19 pandemic there has been a resurgence of interest in this relatively undersung technology.

The power of light to disinfect

Surfaces exposed to UV-C light can be disinfected in a matter of minutes. Operating at a peak wavelength 254 nanometers (nm), UV-C light is highly effective in breaking down the DNA and RNA of viruses, bacteria and mold. This stops viruses from replicating and renders them harmless. It’s so effective that every pathogen tested to-date has been neutralized by UV-C light.1 That includes SAR-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19.2

In 2020, the National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories at Boston University, tested the efficacy of Signify UV-C light sources against SAR-CoV-2. Test results revealed that light sources irradiating the surface of a material inoculated with the virus, reduced it to below detectable levels in as little as 9 seconds for the dried virus and 4 seconds for the wet virus.

As UV-C light is a powerful disinfectant, it’s important that people, animals, and plants are not directly exposed to the light source as it can harm their skin and eyes, and the leaves of plants. This is not an issue with the pods as the disinfection cycle occurs only when the pod is empty of people and the door closed. On the other hand, the glass walls of the pods contain the UV-C rays within the pod, impeding exposure for people, animals and plants located outside of the pods during the disinfection cycle.

Sundström explained the safety features: “The pod door has a sensor built in and when the door closes, two sensors operate to detect presence in the room. If no presence is detected, after five minutes the air conditioning and lights turn off. The system then waits another half a minute before the UV-C lights switch on. If the door opens or any presence is detected, the UV-C lights turn off. Also, the sensors talk with each other and if one of them fails, the UV-C lights won’t switch on.”

During the disinfection cycle a faint blue light is visible in the pod. This is because the UV-C lamp also emits a small peak of light at 405 nm, which is in the blue portion of the visible light spectrum.

“Safety was uppermost in our minds and is taken very seriously,” said Sundström, “the system was designed by an expert and a risk analyst investigated all possible risks. It’s amazing, within minutes the air in the pod and exposed surfaces are disinfected, all without the use of strong chemicals.”

“Our self-disinfecting Module pods are mainly targeted at the European market and first projects have been already installed in Germany by one of our resellers, Procom-Bestmann GmbH. We see demand for this kind of hygiene solution for example in workspaces,” said Martti Mäyry, Business Director for Module solutions at Muotolevy.

Paula Fagerroos-Hautala, OEM Key Account Manager for Signify in the Nordics, said, “This is a classic marriage of Finnish design and twenty-first century innovation. Module uses our 20W TUV lamps and HF-S lamp control gears. Its Hygiene Collection is designed to promote safety, health, and wellbeing in the workplace. This was a growing trend before the pandemic and is now in the spotlight as companies seek to make workspaces safer and virus-free. At the same time, employees returning to work expect extra safety measures from their employers.”

 

2.Nadia Storm et al., Rapid and complete inactivation of SARS-CoV-2 by ultraviolet-C irradiation, 2020, The UV-C irradiance used in this study was 0.849 mW/cm2.

Related Articles


Changing Scene

  • The Lumenpulse Lumenfacade Pure Product Guide is Now Available

    September 26, 2023 Earlier this year, Lumenpulse introduced a linear fixture obsessed with the highest quality white light on the market. The Lumenfacade Pure boasts a clean, modern design with true one-foot incremental lengths and methodical engineering that emphasises ease of installation, elegance, quality, and performance.  Lumenfacade Pure orders have already begun to ship and… Read More…

  • Axis Appoints Dirk Zylstra as Vice President

    Lasalle, QC Canada-based Axis Lighting has named Dirk Zylstra VP/Strategic Innovation & Product Development. According to the company, Zylstra’s 25 years of lighting product design and leadership make him a perfect fit to drive Axis Lighting’s innovation and growth.   “While Dirk worked previously for Axis, we couldn’t be more excited to have him rejoin the team,” comments… Read More…


Design

  • Architectural lighting brings industrial building to life as part of City of Montreal rejuvenation project

    September 11, 2023 Valeco Energie Québec Inc. is a renewable energy development company found on the edge of Frédérick-Back park in Montreal. Valeco acts as the operators of the Biomont Energy cogeneration plant in the Saint-Michel environmental complex, which recovers biogas from the former landfill site and transforms it into green energy. “The park used… Read More…

  • St-Denis Thompson with Eureka Lighting

    St-Denis Thompson with Eureka Lighting

    September 6, 2023 Industrial-era lighting design complements historic office architecture Montreal contractor St-Denis Thompson specializes in building restoration. So, it was no coincidence that it moved its head office to a historic 1908 building on the banks of the Lachine Canal. St-Denis Thompson hired local interior design firm Folio Design to create new offices with… Read More…


New Products

  • Aera Flex and Aera Inflex – The Latest Aera Cylinders

    Aera Flex and Aera Inflex – The Latest Aera Cylinders

    September 26, 2023 Lumenwerx is delighted to unveil the Flex and Inflex, the latest cylindrical additions to the sophisticated Aera family of luminaires. While they maintain the family’s signature clean lines and refined proportions, they are the first Aera cylinders to offer directional adjustability. As such, they enrich the cylinder collection with added versatility, delivering… Read More…

  • HU30M Modular High Performance LED Under Cabinet by Cooper Lighting

    HU30M Modular High Performance LED Under Cabinet by Cooper Lighting

    September 26, 2023 The HU30M Modular High Performance LED Under Cabinet fixture boasts 5 SeleCCTable CCT ranging from 2700K to 5000K and an additional Dim-To-Warm option, all at 90CRI. The series features energy efficient LEDs, glare free optics with universal voltage and a sleek low profile design. The modularity of the series makes the standard… Read More…