A South African company has clinched a deal to distribute a new lighting technology that it says is able to suppress bacteria in the air and on surfaces using a narrow spectrum of visible light.
The licensing agreement covering the technology involves Johannesburg-based Genstar Emergency Lighting Solutions (by way of its SpectraClean trademark) and Hubbell Lighting, a lighting manufacturer headquartered in South Carolina, in the US.
Genstar director Drew Donald highlights the crucial timing of the transaction, given South Africa’s halting emergence from the depths of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Indeed, every person, every industry and all government have a moral and economic obligation to develop new methods of thinking to prevent similar negative spinoffs from the next health crisis,” he comments.
He explains that the SpectraClean technology cleans every area of a room, at different rates based on the distance from the light source and the time taken to disinfect the relevant area.
“Laboratory experiments and case studies show a more than 90% microbe reduction in treated environments in one day. In actively used facilities, SpectraClean continuously reduces microbes at all times and significantly reduces the frequency of manual chemical cleaning. Unlike ultraviolet germicidal irradiation SpectraClean is harmless to humans, materials and surfaces.
"The ramifications are immense, both in term of hygiene, safety and cost savings,” he enthuses.
Owing to capacity constraints in the US, Genstar’s licence agreement with Hubbell enables Genstar to assemble the relevant control board in South Africa, with the 405 nm chips being supplied exclusively by Hubbell.
Accordingly, Genstar has appointed a KwaZulu-Natal manufacturer to populate the board. Donald notes that such an arrangement has the potential to create jobs and will make a positive impact on the province’s economy.
He expects that the initial agreement with Hubbell will yield many additional benefits to Genstar, owing to Hubbell’s position as the exclusive licensee to selected applications of Scotland’s University of Strathclyde lighting technology.
“Strathclyde’s high-intensity narrow spectrum lighting technology boasts a world-class research team at the cutting edge of global innovation. Its close ties to Hubbell and our new association with the [US firm] bode well for prospective new horizons.
"Our licence allows us to link the technology back to the University of Strathclyde such that we will participate in any new research/developments.”
The agreement with Genstar covers all of Southern Africa.