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As we enjoy our summer, we should also stay vigilant of the dangers of COVID-19. The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) recently reported that the number of positive cases has been gradually creeping up during July and other countries are reporting similar trends. Managers of areas with high foot traffic such as school campuses, shopping malls, transportation hubs, residential and commercial buildings, etc. have an important role to play to help keep these areas as safe as possible. So, in this post, we will cover the 5 best practices to keep COVID-19 at bay this summer.
Since the start of the pandemic, it has been widely known that maintaining good environmental hygiene is a very effective way in stopping the spread of the virus. However, keeping large areas, such as schools, hospitals and offices, disinfected has always been a challenge for building managers. Cleaning staff shortages and inefficient schedules mean that not all areas can be cleaned as regularly as needed but thankfully there are technological solutions to solve the issue. GF Technovation (Powered by Guardforce), for instance, has developed the VirusGuard robot disinfection machine. The device, operating using auto-pilot technology travelling along pre-set routes, continuously disinfects the air and surfaces by spraying an aerosolized disinfectant certified safe for humans. Using disinfection robots, such as VirusGuard, helps to not only keep large areas hygienic 24/7 but also saves on manpower. And if a particular area doesn’t suit the use of a disinfection robot, an automated smart diffuser station can be installed in particular high-traffic areas such as entrances and lifts instead.
Another area with high foot traffic is public restrooms. They are also the perfect places for virus transmission as many people are touching the same areas, such as door handles, taps, toilet flushers. As such, building managers should pay particular attention to keeping these areas hygienic. However, managers face the same challenges of cleaning staff shortages and inefficient schedules but smart toilet systems can help solve these problems. These systems, such as the one developed by GF Technovation, automatically monitor the cleanliness of the restroom environment without reliance on human intervention. If the condition falls below a pre-set level, an alert is sent to the supervisor to send cleaning staff to that particular restroom. Smart toilet systems can also include smart toilet roll and smart soap dispensers which again alert staff when the item is depleted and help to reduce waste by dispensing only the amount needed.
Touching door handles helps to transmit viruses from person to person easily and a best practice for building managers would be to install a contactless access control and door opening system. Guardforce Hong Kong, has developed an integrated fever check reader and contactless access control and door opening system for just this purpose. Find out more here.
Measuring the body temperature of visitors at the entrance points of premises is a key way of keeping an infected person out. The process can be rather invasive and labour intensive, however. Therefore, as mentioned above, managers could look into an automated body temperature reader combined with a contactless access control and door opening system such as Guardforce’s Fever Check Reader. Learn more here.
Last but definitely not least, managers should strive to promote good personal hygiene practices to visitors and their staff, including washing handing thoroughly and regularly and wearing masks when unwell to further prevent the spread of the virus.
These 5 best practices to keep COVID-19 at bay this summer are important to prevent another wave of the virus. Visit GF Technovation’s and Guardforce’s website to learn more about their smart hygiene and anti-epidemic solutions.
