SafeTraces has officially announced the start of its UL Verified Ventilation and Filtration program. Leveraging the company’s patented aerosol tracing technology, this assessment and verification program measures real-world performance of aerosol removal rate in the built environment by combining comprehensive desktop review and onsite verification.
“The importance of the indoor environment to human health continues to be a top concern as communities return to shared spaces,” said Sean McCrady, UL’s director of Asset and Sustainability, Real Estate and Properties group. “The UL Verified Ventilation and Filtration Mark empowers building operators and owners to harness the power of science to clearly and concisely communicate a building’s aerosol removal rate while fueling trust with building occupants.”
SafeTraces Brings Greater Visibility into Aerosol Reduction in the Built Environment
The program is being introduced as health concerns surrounding reoccupied spaces remains a top concern among tenants and occupants alike, with some polls indicating nearly 90% of workers have some concerns with workplace safety regarding air quality. The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, inadequate ventilation is the largest source of indoor air quality risk, however, historically, building owners and operators could not historically verify manage and communication real-world ventilation and filtration performance for aerosol removal due to limitations in field assessment tools.
“Now more than ever, the public is seeking transparency regarding ventilation, filtration and other engineering controls critical to ensuring a healthy and safe environment,” said SafeTraces CEO Erik Malmstrom. “Moreover, building owners are seeking to verify the performance of HVAC systems, to strengthen public trust, confidence, and peace of mind, and to competitively differentiate properties based on health and wellness.”
In fact, a major impetus for the program came from corporate, commercial and institutional real estate owners and operators seeking to enhance, communicate, and differentiate on indoor air quality (IAQ), ventilation, and filtration with direct financial implications linked to health & safety, capital and operating expenditure, and sustainability.
As such, SafeTraces, with support from the National Institutes of Health, developed the first diagnostic platform for field verification of ventilation and filtration performance for aerosol removal in shared occupancy spaces. This program leverages patented DNA-tagged aerosol tracers that safely simulate respiratory emissions and exposure to airborne pathogens.
“The verification mark is intended to clearly communicate that ventilation and filtration controls in high density areas of buildings provide N95-like exposure reduction,” continues Malmstrom. “Every real estate owner and operator can benefit from this program in a very big way.”
