TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – The COVID-19 pandemic is not over. In fact, in the last month positive cases had jumped dramatically with a high death rate in almost all of Indonesia. Research shows that the spread of virus and bacteria, including the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19, can occur through aerosols in the air. In July, the World Health Organization has also stated that the transmission of COVID-19 in the form of aerosols or fine particles that float and can survive in the air, can occur in crowded rooms and do not have adequate air ventilation. Therefore, it is important to pay attention to air quality, especially in enclosed spaces.
Berbagai upaya terus dilakukan semua pihak demi menanggulangi laju jumlah kasus terkonfirmasi pada gelombang lanjutan pandemi COVID-19 ini, mulai dari menjaga kebersihan diri dan lingkungan, pola hidup sehat, hingga vaksinasi. Selain protokol 5M harus selalu dipatuhi, kualitas udara yang kita hirup juga memegang kunci dalam transmisi virus dan bakteri yang dapat menyebar melalui partikel-partikel kecil yang melayang di udara, terutama di dalam ruangan.
Signify, perusahaan yang fokus di bidang pencahayaan, menyelenggarakan diskusi virtual bertajuk: 'Perlindungan Gelombang Lanjutan: Desinfeksi Udara dalam Ruang dengan UV-C untuk Mengurangi Risiko Transmisi Virus & Bakteri melalui Udara' yang menghadirkan pembicara ahli di bidang epidemiologi Dicky Budiman dan praktisi pengelola bangunan, Deddy El Rashid.
Dalam pengantar sebelum diskusi dilakukan, Country Leader Signify Indonesia Dedy Bagus Pramono menyampaikan bahwa Signify terus berupaya untuk meningkatkan kesadaran masyarakat dan pemangku kepentingan akan pentingnya menjaga kualitas udara sebagai perlindungan tambahan bagi masyarakat, tidak saja di masa pandemi, namun juga setelah pandemi berlalu. "Pandemi ini memacu kami untuk membawa berbagai aplikasi pencahayaan berteknologi UV-C sebagai solusi yang dapat membantu menangani penyebaran virus, bakteri dan berbagai mikroorganisme pembawa penyakit lainnya. Penggunaan teknologi UV-C dapat turut berperan dalam mempercepat pulihnya kehidupan dan aktivitas masyarakat serta membantu mendorong perekonomian,” katanya dalam diskusi itu pada 5 Agustus 2021.
Epidemiologist from the Center for Environmental and Population Health, Griffith University Australia, Dicky Budiman, said this pandemic was neither the first nor the last. Generally, pandemics that are a big problem for humans are in the form of airborne diseases. “Thus, prevention of disease transmission through the air is very important, not only related to the current COVID-19, but also in the future. Technology can help humans get out of a crisis situation like today, and keep the air quality clear and healthy in order to avoid various diseases.” kinds of potential causes of disease such as viruses, bacteria and fungi,” he said.
Dicky explained, the potential for transmission in the room, especially those that do not have adequate ventilation, is very large. Although the room is large, the air circulation must be calculated carefully. As an illustration, the droplets produced by people sneezing or coughing can be carried in the air up to 9 meters.
Webinar entitled “Advanced Wave Protection: Indoor Air Disinfection with UV-C to Reduce the Risk of Airborne Virus & Bacteria Transmission” by Signify on 5 Aug 2021/Signify
Inadequate ventilation in an enclosed space can cause viruses and bacteria to stay in the air longer, so when someone enters or walks through the space and breathes the air, they can become infected. Therefore, we need to ensure adequate ventilation and clean air circulation, especially in closed public spaces such as offices, schools, shops, restaurants, and places of worship where there are many people doing activities.
Meanwhile, Deddy El Rashid, a Building Management Practitioner who also serves as Secretary General of BOMA Indonesia and BOG ASHRAE Indonesia reminded that it is important for us to have new guidelines related to building infrastructure in this era of adapting to new habits. “One of them is to equip air disinfection equipment that is safe, effective and reliable to improve indoor air quality and reduce the risk of spreading airborne diseases, such as COVID-19, said Deddy.
Deddy said that for professional buildings, there are three ways that can be done to reduce the risk of spreading diseases through the air, namely controlling the source of the virus before entering the building, maximizing air ventilation, and installing air purification or disinfection equipment. “One of the most effective technologies for disinfecting both air and surfaces is with UV-C light. Especially at the wavelength of 253.7 nm or 254 nm, UV-C light is known to be most effective in inactivating all types of bacteria and viruses. Therefore UV-C is also known as GUV (Germicidal Ultraviolet) or UVGI (Ultraviolet Germicidal Irradiation),” he said.
According to Deddy El Rashid, there are four UV-C applications that can be applied in professional buildings, namely for upper air disinfection, air disinfection on cooling coil surfaces, air duct disinfection and indoor surface disinfection. Of the four applications, the easiest and most effective way to do this is to install UV-C air disinfection, especially the UV-C upper air type. This type of luminaire is installed at a certain height, designed in such a way and in accordance with the NIOSH Guidelines on safe radiation, which allows this system to continuously disinfect the air circulating in the room, without endangering people working underneath. “Mechanical ventilation and/or natural convection will circulate the disinfected air back to the bottom of the chamber. The Upper Air UV-C kit is also equipped with shielding and optics on the luminaire that comply with the Safety Guidelines and is designed to prevent harmful exposure to radiation. UV-C for people who are under it,” said Deddy.
Deddy added that Equivalent Air Changes Per Hour (eACH), or “Hourly Equivalent Air Changes Adjustment” which is the ability of building managers to anticipate intake control air to control microorganisms in the air by other methods, such as the use of UV-C Upper Air to disinfect the air, and a HEPA filter that functions to filter the air. Both of these methods if applied to a certain degree can replace mechanical ventilation. “So, if ACH is measured by the amount of air from outside coming in to dissolve potentially harmful particles in the room, eACH is an equivalent adjustment obtained through assistive devices, for example by the combined use of an overhead UV-C and HEPA filter. For buildings where it is difficult to add ventilation to increase the inflow of outside air, overhead UV-C can help achieve adequate eACH,” he said.
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