Lisburn-based OKTO Technologies has proposed that NI schools should install its Covid-19 air filtering tech to help keep students and teachers safe.
Schools across Northern Ireland are starting to re-open their doors this week following a long lockdown period, but there are concerns that not enough has been done to make them safe for teachers or students. The World Health Organisation suggests that schools should practice at least 1m of social distancing and rooms should be well ventilated, but this isn't always happening.
Circulating air in enclosed spaces has been shown to have a significant impact on the transmission of Covid-19. Lisburn-based OKTO Technologies has now proposed that schools should invest in its OKTOair solution to keep classrooms safe. OKTOair has been shown to be effective at filtering 99.9% of tiny airborne particles out of the air, including the Covid-19 virus.
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The company has said that its tech can be implemented in any building up to 1 million square feet in area, and will filter Covid-19 particles out of the air for an energy investment of around 17p per child per day in average conditions. The tech includes indoor air quality monitoring systems placed thoughout a building, the filtering system itself, and a dashboard that reports air quality stats to users.
The technology has already been installed in over 60,000 schools in New York and Chicago in the United States, and has been integrated into many new smart buildings currently in construction. OKTO Technologies is now urging Northern Ireland's schools to adopt the tech in order to reassure students and teachers that their learning spaces are safe.
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MD Philip Dowds commented: "OKTOair is a proven, cost-effective solution which tackles the virus transmission issue and delivers peace of mind, not only in schools but across all business sectors. The added value of the dashboard means teachers can see, at a glance, that the air they are breathing is pure and contaminant-free."
Source: Written based on press release
