CITY OF FRESNO 

City of Fresno did a study on the Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning systems in transportation systems (HVAC Systems). Fresno discovered that having an efficient HVAC system reduces the risk of spreading COVID-19. In the month of October 2020, the City of Fresno bought 4,000 Air Guardian filtration fixtures, which will be installed sometime next year. Below is a news report on the Air Guardian Fresno purchase along with a summary of the City of Fresno Transportation study on HVAC systems.

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -

Fresno's city council has voted in favor of a new line of defense for the most vulnerable populations.

The plan is to install ultraviolet disinfecting fixtures at community centers citywide.

City council president Miguel Arias says, "We selected the two areas of city facilities that are constantly occupied and that we need to provide additional protection in case there is an outbreak".

Powered by parent company Illumipure, Air Guardian purifies air by removing pathogens, particulates, and pollutants that circulate through the fixture, with UV light.

A representative with the contractors doing the energy efficiency project at City Hall discussed the product and how effective the unit is saying, "Not only are we killing influenza were killing the COVID virus if it goes in this container it's not coming out. In about 13 seconds, we're doing it at a 99% ratio; in 26 seconds we're getting it at 99.99%.

He adds, "We want to make sure they feel safe and they have the most modern technology to clean the air and kill the bacteria when they're used as cooling centers in the winter months".

In addition to placing these units in community centers, council approved almost $917,000 in additional Cares Act funding to supply each of the city's fire stations, as their shifts span 24-48 hours.

These will be fully operational in community centers run by the city and all fire stations by December.

FRESNO STATE TRANSPORTATION –

The Fresno State Transportation Institute posed a concern about how the coronavirus would impact public transportation given that it is difficult to social distance in the limited space of buses, trains, and planes. Given that these modes of transportation rely on HVAC systems to circulate air, the additional risk of the virus circulating in the air has become a concern.

With this in mind, the study seeks to answer the following questions: How fast does the virus travel/clear in the bus's airflow? How does the virus transmit via surfaces on the bus?

The methods and devices used to quantify the data for these answers included smoke candles, videotaping, air speed measurers, temperature, relative humidity and CO distributions, pressure differentials, particle counts, 3D numerical simulation models and virus numbers and their infectious abilities. The experiment tested various methods to aid in purifying the airflow and surfaces within the bus. In regards to the airflow, the photocatalytic insert and the UV-C lights proved most effective in eliminating the virus. Please see the infographic for further details.

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BARBERS HILL INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT 

Barbers Hill Independent School District is based out of Huston Texas. Barbers Hill ISD has installed illumiPure Air Guardian filtration fans district-wide and have been back in school since August 2020. The result has been 0 confirmed COVID-19 cases to date. Below is Barber Hills testimonial about the Air Guardian filtration fans.

RE: Clean Box & Clean White Anti-Viral & Anti-Microbial Disinfection Lighting

Who would have thought 2020 would leave such a scar in our country as it has? K-12 schools have had to re-think safety standards to protect both staff and students on top of newly emerging education challenges.

My name is Ricky Shelton and I am the Energy Manager for Barbers Hills Independent School District in Houston Texas. I serve as the vice president of TEMA “Texas Energy Managers Association”, an organization created from the State Energy Conservation Office “CECO” in Austin Texas, which is designed to guide school, and public entities to not only reduce energy consumption but also build safe learning environments.

Barbers Hill ISD introduction to the NEW Air Guardian UV Clean Box product a month after the COVID pandemic shut the city of Houston down. I am writing this letter on behalf of a new product line from illumiPure / Calyx for their Air Guardian UV Fixture made in Houston Texas.

We have used the Air Guardian Light technology several months back before COVID and have been delighted with the Microbial Disinfection from this product. There is no chemical spraying, or waist of custodial man-hours to do a less than stellar job. We started the installation process in the athletic departments, nurse’s stations, and administration offices as an introduction that proved to be very successful. Because of the success, we have two units per classroom. I thought bad people with guns was a revelation, nothing compares to the way COVID has changed our educational processes.

School started back mid-August for in school learning, but before students arrived, we put new policies in place. We installed on each desk a three-sided shield, students wear masks between classes, and lunchtime, staff wear masks as normal daily routine, hand sanitizers, and there is nightly cleaning, and disinfecting. The districts original attendance numbers started at 87% in the classroom and 13% online, six weeks later we are at 93% in the classroom. Our staff feels that the Air Guardian products play a crucial role in keeping people safe knowing it is disinfecting while class is in session. To date, we have had ZERO cases of the COVID virus.  

Not only does the Air Guardian Product Line present an immediate answer to the current pandemic our students and faculty face, but we have also future proofed our ceilings in our yearly fight against Influenza. Safe student attendance is our main priority and with this installation we have provided a long-term battle plan that can face the unforeseen future of viruses.

After reviewing several different UV product lines, numerous scrubbers and filters, we are extremely proud with our choice to move forward with the immaculight products. Just knowing the district is doing all it can to keep people safe is comforting to the parents, students, and our community within or district. I feel it is my responsibility to not only our community, but to our city, and states to inform other districts in making good decisions when purchasing products that affect people’s lives.

Please feel free to reach out to me for any questions you may have before making the decision to protect your schools and spend your local taxpayer dollars.

Energy Manager Barbers Hill ISD 832-784-2496

CITY OF ONTARIO 

Ontario Public Health created a “Frequently Asked Questions” page on the study of Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning systems in buildings (HVAC Systems). In their study they found that having an efficient HVAC system will help stop the spread of COVID-19. In the month of November 2020, the City of Ontario purchased Air Guardian filtration fans, which will be installed the beginning of next year. Below is a summary of their conclusions on HVAC systems.

Enhancing outdoor air ventilation and good maintenance of HVAC systems will complement other public health measures to reduce COVID-19 transmission, e.g., screening, self-isolation when sick, physical distancing, hand hygiene, respiratory source control, environmental cleaning and disinfection.

In addition to the risk reducing measures to prevent droplets and close contact transmission, good ventilation is important in indoor environments for the general health and comfort of occupants. Optimization of HVAC systems can be done on the basis of best practices for ventilation, as COVID-19 transmission from HVAC systems has not been observed. In general, avoiding stagnant air conditions and ventilating indoor environments with fresh outdoor air, whether by increasing the outdoor air ratio of the HVAC system or by opening windows, will dilute exhaled air from the occupants including any infectious particles. Thus, most guidance encourage ventilation with outdoor air, avoiding recirculation as far as practically possible and ensuring clean filters.

For central air handling units at a building level or serving multiple zones, avoiding recirculation is ideal, operating on as high as possible or 100% outdoor air supply. Even if this is not feasible for the whole facility, it may be possible for specific high-risk zones, highly occupied areas, or in healthcare settings, wards or rooms where COVID-19 patients are being treated. Some HVAC systems may not allow changes to outdoor air fractions, and those that do may require adjustments to filter maintenance protocols. In these situations, the outdoor air level can be enhanced by opening windows, checking filter adequacy or upgrading filters.

Additional measures include controlling humidity (relative humidity of 40%-60%), minimizing the number of people sharing the same environment, and individually avoiding being in the way of another person’s direct airflow.

Standards are set by various bodies for different types of building environments.

Standards for air change rates are available from the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) for HVAC systems in specific zones or areas in healthcare facilities, CSA Z317.2:19. These air change rate standards for clinical settings account for the potential of airborne infection risks.

For other indoor settings, the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) provides minimum ventilation rates for acceptable indoor air quality according to the type of setting (correctional facilities, offices, educational settings, hotels, food and beverage settings), occupancy and area. This standard was set in order to keep carbon dioxide (CO2) at levels where most occupants would not have complaints about air quality (e.g., from occupant odors) but were established before COVID 19 and do not take into account mitigation of infection transmission.

CO2 levels serve as a proxy for determining whether outdoor air ventilation is adequate for the number of occupants. In order to have meaningful indoor CO2 measurements, sampling during typical and peak occupancies and at different points during the day will be informative and can be compared with outdoor CO2 levels. As occupants breathe out CO2, if sufficient outdoor air ventilation is occurring, CO2 levels will not buildup in the room over the course of the day.

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DUNKIN DONUTS 

Forbes wrote an article on whether or not the Dunkin’ Brand would survive during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the month of December 2020, the Dunkin Donuts company purchased Air Guardian filtration fixtures, which will be installed sometime next year. Below is a summary of an article on the survival rate of The Dunkin brand.

Dunkin’ Brands’ stock (NASDAQ: DNKN) can survive a COVID recession despite declining around 19% since the beginning of the year. The restaurant industry is rattled, with restaurants like Luby’s put up for sale. A COVID recession will impact the company’s revenues, cash flows, and ability to pay dividends. Fading consumer demand, reduced discretionary spending, and stay-at-home orders, will result in minimal visits for restaurants, perhaps until a vaccine is discovered and available. 

Trefis (used to calculate future revenues for companies) analyzes the potential Impact Of The Covid-19 Recession On Dunkin’ Brands with a focus on the company’s liquidity reserves and concludes that Dunkin’ Brands have a steady financial position and a Covid-19 recession will not have a major impact on the company’s cash reserves in the near term.

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CITY OF EL MONTE 

The City of El Monte has been working on creating a solution that will help stop or slow down the spread of COVID-19 creating a safe environment for their civilians. In the month of October 2020, the City of El Monte purchased Air Guardian Filtration Fans, which will be installed the beginning of next year. Below is an announcement the City of El Monte has made towards their citizens, they have also offered “Business Resources” to help as well.

The City of South El Monte is actively monitoring the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) situation. The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health is the lead authority for all public health emergencies in our City and County. 

We advise residents and businesses to follow all recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as well as local orders from the California Department of Public Health and the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. 

COVID-19 BUSINESS RESOURCES

CITY OF RIALTO 

The City of Rialto has been working on creating a solution that will help stop or slow down the spread of COVID-19 creating a safe environment for their civilians. In the month of October 2020, the City of Rialto purchased Air Guardian Filtration Fans, which will be installed the beginning of next year. Below is an announcement the City of Rialto has made for their citizens.

The City of Rialto continues to assess the impact of COVID-19. In accordance with best practices from Federal, State and County Health Agencies, the City of Rialto has taken measured action, consistent with other agencies in the region, to reduce the risk of transmission and overall impact of COVID-19. All City events and activities from March through May 2020 have been cancelled. Future event scheduling will be subject to action by the City, consistent with best practices in COVID-19 prevention and the recommendations or orders of the San Bernardino County Health Officer. All City facilities have been closed to the public, but they are open by phone, email, fax and other than face- to-face means. Consistent with the State of California Reopening Plan, the City will be evaluating opportunities to reopen facilities with best practices to reduce transmission.

The City of Rialto is advising everyone, including all City employees, to comply with the recommendations of State and County officials with regard to best practices in transmission prevention. When around others, inside businesses, or away from home with a potential to contact other individuals, the City of Rialto finds that facial coverings are essential.

As various sectors of business reopen it will remain essential that social distancing practice remain in place. This will include:

  • Limiting building, facility and open space occupancy counts to 50% or less of pre-COVID-19 levels.

  • 6-foot spacing practices including floor markings, changes in path of travel and limiting entrance to control flow inside businesses.

  • The placement of barriers between employees and customers in close contact environments like customer service desks and check-out lines.

  • Hand washing and/or sanitizer stations available in work and customer environments.

The Rialto School District health & safety of the Rialto Community is a number one priority. The District is taking all necessary actions to combat the threat of COVID-19. This includes the closure of schools and comprehensive cleaning and disinfecting efforts. They continue to work with local, state and federal agencies during this health crisis.

Health & Safety:

  1. All classrooms will be deep cleaned. Also, all facilities will be cleaned and disinfected during the closure. (e.g. restrooms, door handles, light switches, and high-traffic areas such as lounges, etc.)

  2. All facilities that will be in use during the closure will be cleaned and disinfected daily.

  3. All Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems will be maintained, including changing of filters.

  4. Encouraging everyone to practice “Social Distancing” (6 feet apart), frequent hand-washing and respiratory etiquette.

  5. Gatherings will be limited to 50 people or less.

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