As we grapple with what the “new normal” looks like in the United States, no industry is exempt from evaluating its practices in the interest of protecting the public against viruses like COVID-19. Outbreaks at food processing facilities are still pervasive. Parents want kids to return to school in the fall, but are concerned about their children’s safety. Gym visitors wonder if it’s safe to exercise indoors and in close quarters, especially if it’s difficult for them to breathe while wearing a mask. Some universities, faced with plummeting enrollments, are talking of establishing fever checkpoints in academic buildings, requiring masks in dining halls and even using dormitories for quarantine facilities. And, many airport workers are feeling unprotected at work, leading some to refuse boarding aircrafts to clean cabins after flights.
Until a few months ago, these are challenges we wouldn’t have anticipated. It’s hard to know where to start when it comes to both preventing risk and helping visitors, employees and customers at our facilities feel comfortable and safe. Face masks and disinfecting procedures have been at the center of our conversations about preventing the spread of COVID-19, but it’s difficult to predict what will work, establish the frequency at which you’ll sanitize your facility and ensure efficiency all at once.
As a long-standing partner in safety for the food industry, Birko has worked hard to determine ways to protect not only food products, but also workers at food processing plants and breweries.
Now, we’ve developed a solution that any industry and facility can use to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 and other viruses: Birko’s Mobile Mister.
The Mobile Mister: A Safe, Easy Way to Disinfect High-Traffic and Hard-to-Reach Areas
When the coronavirus pandemic hit the United States in early 2020, we knew our partners in the food and brewing industries would count on us to help them meet it head on. Since we’re at the front line of food safety, we understand the high stakes of a pathogen reaching food facilities and knew we had to deliver chemicals, equipment and resources fast to help our customers get ahead of COVID-19.
In response to the need for a quick, efficient cleaning solution, our engineers worked around the clock to design equipment for use in breakrooms, bathrooms and other areas that see groups of employees in food processing plants. Since its development, other industries have begun to inquire about the Mobile Mister’s capabilities for applications beyond the food industry.
The Mobile Mister is a portable system used to apply a fine mist of sanitizer and disinfectant to hard surfaces. Featuring a combination of nozzles affixed to the unit and a hand-held spray wand with a 25-foot coiled hose, the Mobile Mister enables users to cover hard, non-porous surfaces at various heights and hard-to-reach areas with Peraspray sanitizer. This EPA-registered, non-toxic solution has proven efficacy against viruses such as H1N1, the common cold and those similar to COVID-19. It is ready to use, requiring no mixing or dilution, and presents minimal risk to the personnel applying it, children or animals.
Designed for maximum efficiency and reach, the Mobile Mister carries 5 or 10 gallons (depending on model) of Peraspray sanitizer in dimensions compact enough to maneuver through spaces as narrow as aircraft aisles. Each 5-gallon container on the unit provides approximately 45 minutes of continued spray time, allowing you to cover large surface areas evenly in a short period of time.
A Sanitation Solution for Food Processors, Manufacturers, Schools, Gyms and More
Sanitation is at the forefront of reopening conversations for businesses and customers alike—we want to keep our customers safe, and our customers have a heightened sense of awareness of the potential risks in resuming their lifestyles and normal activities. We’re wrestling with both mitigating safety risks and ensuring our customers are comfortable returning to our facilities.
While many businesses are increasing their sanitation methods, there’s still a lot of uncertainty about if those methods will work, and those fears aren’t unfounded. One study from early 2020, for example, revealed that drug-resistant bacteria, viruses, and other pathogens were present on 25% of surfaces researchers tested in athletic facilities. As gym equipment is notoriously hard to clean, preventing the spread of pathogens may seem like an insurmountable challenge.
Similar concerns abound for sports facility owners, schools, and even playgrounds. Equipment in these environments—especially in large quantities—is difficult to reach and sanitize effectively.
The Mobile Mister can alleviate some of these concerns, as it allows you to reach areas you wouldn’t be able to easily—and coat them evenly with an effective disinfectant that doesn’t damage the surface. The Peraspray solution acts quickly, killing bacteria in just 60 seconds of application and viruses within 10 minutes.
The Mobile Mister works by applying the mist to the area and letting it dry, getting more effective surface coverage and disinfection than traditional spray bottle methods.
How It Works
With proper training, any employee can operate the Mobile Mister. See it in action and learn more about its benefits in this video.
Testing, Certifications, and Specifications
The development of the Mobile Mister included close attention to the science needed for effectively fighting pathogens. Birko’s expert team of scientists and engineers evaluated the chemistry and design needed to create an efficient solution, and put the equipment through rigorous testing including stress tests, ambient air tests and more. For more on the equipment design, dimensions, or features, download our information sheet on the Mobile Mister for the food industry or for other industries.
Save Time, Money and Resources and Get Peace of Mind
While many businesses and consumers view the current pandemic as a temporary situation, it’s safe to predict that our “new normal” will include, at the very least, a heightened awareness of the viruses that pose risks to us, which means we’ll need to build effective sanitation into our daily lives.
Birko is here to help you do just that. View our COVID-19 resources or reach out to us for more information on keeping your workforce safe, how to prepare your facility for reopening, or to learn more about the Mobile Mister, sanitation solutions or the Birko team today.
