ParticleOne providing virus security to businesses looking to reopen safely
by CM Staff
ParticleOne was developed in response to environmental engineering firm RWDI's own challenge to understand and manage the different risk levels for each of its 26 offices.
The ParticleOne platform measures, tracks and monitors COVID and other pathogen risks inside buildings. Facility managers are able to make informed, science-based decisions on what mitigations are needed in a specific space to reduce the risk of an outbreak. (CNW Group/ParticleOne)
GUELPH — Businesses are confidently reopening their doors with an accurate understanding of their buildings’ COVID-19 risk levels and an effective game plan, due in part to technologies such as ParticleOne, a new Canadian company working in building science, air flow, ventilation, and viral transmission.
ParticleOne builds on general Public Health guidance to address the complexity of distinct spaces, enabling business owners to make informed choices. By applying building science, data analytics, and computer modelling, ParticleOne creates a profile of a space and offers clear, science-based guidance and solutions. The system accounts for the distinct layout, use, ventilation, and location of a building, while also calculating the future impacts of emerging variants, local infection and vaccination rates.
As an early client of ParticleOne, Pharmasave Elora Apothecary owner Bronwyn Tolmie outlines the common challenge many business owners face in trying to make their space “safe”: “There is a lot of talk about what is ‘safe,’ but it is very hard to measure an invisible threat like COVID. With ParticleOne’s analysis of our site, we are able to ‘see’ our risk level—and apply the necessary solutions to allow us to operate our business with confidence.”
ParticleOne was developed in response to environmental engineering firm RWDI’s own challenge to understand and manage the different risk levels for each of its 26 offices and three model shops around the world. RWDI developed ParticleOne in partnership with University of Guelph genomics scientist, Dr. Steven Newmaster, to inform its reopening plans.
ParticleOne is primarily focused on reducing the risk of COVID inside shared spaces, but its technology and solutions will also measure the risk for other common viruses and emerging pathogens.
RWDI President and CEO, Michael J. Soligo, confirms: “Well-prepared organizations recognize that monitoring pathogen risk is the new normal. But we also know first-hand, after five decades of consulting on ventilation, air quality and measuring containments, that the benefits of ‘cleaner air’ go well beyond COVID. Increased productivity, less absenteeism, and a healthier workforce ensures a healthier business overall.”
