E-Co is proud to announce that they have won the Best Indoor Air Quality Technology for at The Technology Innovator.
Best Indoor Air Quality Technology
E-CO is the leader in high-intensity ultraviolet germicidal solutions for HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning). The company helps you implement green and efficient Steril-AireTM UVC technology for HVAC systems across your building/facilities, to deliver cleaner indoor air, free of bacteria, viruses and mould, while reducing your HVAC energy cost by 20%. Before we set up the company, I read a number of ar- ticles about the effects of indoor air quality on people’s health and came across a technology known as IJVGI (ultraviolet germicidal irradiation) that could kill any virus or bacteria, regardless of its type. Even better, I discovered that it had won a Nobel Prize too. The fact that UVGI could kill viruses such as influenza seemed amazing as every year a new variant of influenza effects the health of thousands of people in the UK alone. In addition I discovered UVC also kills superbugs like MRSA & C.Difficile and in the news more recently that IJVGI could be potentially used in the fight against antibiotic-resistant bacteria, a massive and growing problem in the healthcare industry Our clients are many and varied from the NHS to the military where, for instance, we can reduce exposure to biological agents to the financial services industry where we can significantly reduce absenteeism rates. I’m sure you are aware salaries are very high in this sector and the cost of absenteeism can literally mean millions of pounds in lost trades. Most of our success has been born out of sheer persistence and a belief we are right in our focus and that ultimately we know we can to help organisations significantly reduce absenteeism and improve produc- tivity in a new and innovative way. We are an SME business and whilst we have a prestigious customer base, it’s still too small. IJVGI should be flooding the market but currently, it’s a niche technology. My hope is that greater exposure will bring greater general acceptance Our main focus has been the commercial sector as from a corporate cultural perspective they are more willing to accept “new” technologies if it can improve their bottom line. The NHS are a harder nut to crack but we are making progress and are about to under-take a long-awaited clinical study which could lead to massive requirements going forward. We are constantly on the look-out for new applications for our technology and we believe we are unique in the UK because of our depth of knowledge and expertise in the area of indoor air quality that is only now emerging as a serious health threat. Our whole approach is to sit on the prospective customers’ side of the table and ask ourselves “what’s in it for me” The NHS is a great example of the potential benefits we can deliver in that we can not only deliver reductions in absenteeism the knock-on benefits could be huge reductions inpatient medications, reductions in bed days leading to improved bed throughput and saving lives too. So proof is what it’s all about and that can take time and a lot of commitment from ourselves and our clients. We maintain a high level of expertise and believe that sharing our collective knowledge makes us all stronger. Our commitment to our customers sets us apart, they pay our bills so we need to be able to accurately predict what their needs are now and in the future and how we can continue to deliver. We look at our competitors and respect what they do but in the areas we operate there really isn’t anyone who can offer the range of solutions we can from personal/mobile protection, residential & area protection to whole buildings and not to forget Royal Naval warships. Recently there’s been a marked increase in interest in the health effects of exposure to polluted outdoor air. Official figures state that there are 29,000 premature deaths in the UK from outdoor air pollutants. What they haven’t acknowledged yet is that indoor environments where we spend 90% of our lives are 2-5 times more polluted. The biggest opportunities will come from increased awareness of health issues by corporates stemming from their perennial requirement to reduce absenteeism & improve productivity. In addition, there are added background pressures to plan for possible future pandemics. If you recall in the last 12 years we’ve had SARs, Avian Flu, Swine Flu, Ebola & currently MERs. With modern air travel, it’s quite possible that other viruses will spread and businesses have to carry out contingency planning for now and the future. More recently it has been acknowledged that governments and large corporates would have to plan against the potential threat of a bioterrorist attack. Ventilation systems (the buildings’ breathing network) are the ideal network to deliver bio-agents with possibly devastating effects. Our IJVGI technology was tested by the U.S. government and the EPA (Environment Protection Agency) precisely for this occurrence and is now used in all U.S. government buildings. Trying to get the UK government to do that same would be huge for us. Last but not least we’ve discovered our technology is a massive energy saver too.
HIllary Spicer – E-CO – CEO
