AntiBacterialScreens | Rap Industries Ltd

Integrating Anti-Bacterial into Your Office Design Has Benefits for Your Business and Employees

Aside from the elections and referendums dominating the news this year, there has been another story rumbling under the surface which we should be taking notice of. In recent years, emerging reports have begun to cover the issue of resistant bacteria which is not affected by the anti-bacterial hand wash that everyone started to get obsessed with a few years back. Now the issue is becoming more prevalent and more resistant bacteria means a faster spread of illness and the inevitable increase in sick days

This especially applies to classrooms and offices which have a reputation as hotbeds for spreading illness and disease. While cleanliness obviously plays a factor in this, it also includes the amount of time that large groups of people spend together in this environment. On the other hand, hospitals can mitigate this by adding anti-bacterial surfaces throughout while providing anti-bacterial gels and soaps throughout the site. However, the same cannot be said for other public places. If we are going to be more vulnerable to illness, then both businesses and educational facilities should be more aware about healthiness in the design process to keep the number of sick days down and thus, boost productivity and the wellbeing of those who occupy these environments.

Offices Have a Chequered History with Employee Health

Any environment which is inhabited with a large group of people over an extended period is going to be vulnerable to the spread of illness and infection. As our office designs strive to encourage communication and teamwork, the open and collaborative nature of the modern office can subsequently become a major factor in the quick and efficient spread of nasty bacteria. The problem, as is always the case with bacteria, is that we cannot see the effect without the use of a microscope, so cleanliness and general wellbeing often fall down the list when new office designs are being drawn up.

The most recent government statistics (http://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/labourproductivity/articles/sicknessabsenceinthelabourmarket/2014-02-25) from 2014 revealed that people in the UK, took 131 million days off sick with common illnesses often cited as being the reason for the absence. As we have explored in the past, one major contributor to this is the growth of environmental stressors such as audible and visual distractions which lead to heightened stress levels and weakened immune systems. In total, the study estimates that sick days reported by businesses across the UK resulted in a deficit of approximately £16bn per year.

Attacking the Issue at the Source

The minute nature of bacteria means that the issue needs to be addressed at the source. Here at Rap Industries, one of the ways we are tackling this is to begin introducing silver ions into our office products which helps to quell the spread of bacteria. When we think of silver, we can be quick to conclude that silver is a bit of a luxury material, often used to make currency. However, silver has a unique quality that simply cannot be found in any other material on earth. On a particle level, silver ions can interrupt and completely prevent bacteria from growing and spreading. In fact, silver nanoparticles can now be found in cosmetics, socks, food containers, detergents and many more to combat the spread of illness and infection. Technology firms are even introducing it into the touchscreen of your phone, so are modern interior designers taking bacteria into consideration when designing the spaces which we spend the majority of our lives in?

Implementing a Healthy Office Boosts Productivity

Introducing anti-bacterial throughout your office does not have to constitute a complete overhaul of the design. With plenty of healthy bacteria out there which helps our bodies to thrive, it would be overzealous to begin coating every wall, phone and pencil with silver ions simply because we are trying to prevent the common cold. However, one solution which has been developed at Rap Industries, a leading manufacturer of partition screens for over 40 years, is to integrate the anti-bacterial technology into office screens. These incorporate the flexible design of partition screens, which are traditionally used to combat those audible and visual distractions which we touched upon above.

An anti-bacterial fabric is then applied and silver ions are integrated with the framework to help prevent bacteria from spreading. What makes this solution ideal is that the screens can be used to apply a partial divide in the open plan environment, allowing collaboration to continue while providing privacy to those who thrive in it. Then, by making the partitions anti-bacterial, this helps to protect colleagues and co-workers when a bout of the sniffles begins to break out in the office.

On their own, anti-bacterial screens are not being utilised to their full potential and achieving this requires consideration towards other elements of the design. In the study cited earlier, alongside illness, a major contributor to the sick day is back and neck strains which are commonly caused by poor posture and a lack of information regarding staying healthy while working at a desk. Anti-bacterial may be great at stopping you from catching the flu, but it is going to have no impact on whether you strain your back by slouching all day.

The Clean Approach to Managing Office Design

Workplace safety is something which we commonly associate with primary jobs such as agriculture and construction. Only in recent times have we started to realise the impact that office environments can have on our health and fortunately an increasing number are exploring the impact of issues which we simply cannot see. For example, acoustics and bacteria can both have a significant effect both short term and long term and as such, it is important to factor these in when creating a fresh design. Healthy workplace designs significantly boost the productivity of employees and help to make the business more efficient on the whole.

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Rap Industries have been developing and manufacturing office furniture and partition screens for over 40 years and our designs are moulded by the feedback of our clients. One of the results of this is the Safeguard Screen which integrates anti-bacterial fabric into a partition screen, helping open plan environments to address issues concerning privacy as well as health.

You’ve probably seen the warning signs in the media, speculating on antibiotic resistant bacteria that will leave humans exposed. In which case, it can be easy to get carried away with the headlines while ignoring the facts. While, it is true, in the sense that bacteria are adapting to the drugs that we use, but it is also true that we are adapting to the way that bacteria develop. In fact, there is a material which has been around for thousands of years which is more effective at fighting off the miniscule microbes. We’ve explored how Anti-Bacterial Material Prevent the Spread of Bacteria and Diseases? Silver is a key component in products boasting “kills 99.9% of bacteria”, and now it is possible to integrate this into furniture and more to stop bacteria before it even has a chance to spread.

How Are They Composed?

Safeguard Medical Screens are designed to integrate and improve upon traditional screens that you can expect to see in hospitals and clinics. While initially planned to provide privacy, medical screens have seen significant improvement over the years to further enhance the environments that surround them. Now, they are composed of a lightweight core, which first and foremost makes them easy to use, so it is simple to make the most of the space available and adjust areas if required.

Within the panel, silver ions are integrated into the lining as well as coated across the panel, and as we explored before, this helps to weaken the bacteria, making it vulnerable to cleaning products and more. The anti-bacterial fabric is available in a range of vibrant colours, which aids in brightening up medical environments and veering away from the whitewashed approach.

Which Medical Environments Are They Best Suited to:

Hospitals are the obvious beneficiaries of what Safeguard Medical Screens have to offer. A major advantage is that they can be tailor made to adapt to the environment, in short, if they are required for privacy, then the size can be adjusted. If you plan to use them in waiting rooms then the width can be changed. The addition of the anti-bacterial technology can assist in reducing the spread of illness and infection and help to keep those visiting hospitals healthy from other afflictions.

This kind of benefit can be easily transferred to clinics and other small locations which operate under the same circumstances. In these environments in particular, making the most of the space available can be very valuable. So, with medical screens which are easy to move, your space can be used to full effectiveness and utilised for multiple purposes. As a result, you can preserve a significant chunk of your budget, simply by installing temporary screens rather than having a permanent wall built.

How Can They Help You?

Safeguard Medical Screens are not restricted to just medical environments however. Illness is a common factor in reducing productivity and introducing anti-bacterial screens in order to reduce this can only help to boost the health and wellbeing of staff. While there has been plenty said regarding the mental wellbeing of employees, it is equally important to strive to have a healthy workforce who are in the right state both physically and mentally to perform to the best of their ability.

This is particularly prevalent in medical environments where it is imperative to reduce the spread of bacteria, especially when visitors are those who can be most susceptible and at risk of even the common cold. It is true that anti-bacterial materials are not the ultimate answer to this, but when combined with other preventative measures, they can go a long way to reducing the spread of illness and infections.

If you would like to find out more about the Safeguard Medical Screens and how they can integrate into your environment, then please call us on 01733 394941 or send an e-mail to sales@rapind.com.