CREJ

July 2021 — Property Management Quarterly — Page 25 www.crej.com Wellness Asphalt Installation & Overlays l Remove & Replace Patching l Concrete Installation l Curb & Gutter & Sidewalks l Infrared Patching l Crack Sealing l Seal Coating l Pavement Marking/Striping “APEX PAVEMENT SOLUTIONS continues to grow in its stature in the paving industry of Colorado. The company has steadily built a solid reputation for high quality and customer service. President Brian Pike leads a dedicated team and we are proud of them as a member company. ” Thomas Peterson, PE. Executive Director, Colorado Asphalt Pavement Association www.apexpvmt.com VISIT US AT:  607 10th Street, Suite 207 l Golden, Colorado 80401 P : 303-273-1417 l E : info@apexpvmt.com SERVICES: PAVING CONCRETE INFRARED PATCHING CRACK SEALING SEAL COAT & STRIPE APEX PAVEMENT SOLUTIONS YOUR ONE-STOP-SHOP FOR ASPHALT & CONCRETE PROJECTS Call or Email for a FREE Estimate COMMERCIAL ROOFING AND SHEET METAL • Award-winning roofing contractor serving Colorado's commercial and industrial building owners and property managers for over 3 5 years. • Experts in TPO, EPDM, PVC and Standing Seam roofing systems. • Specializing in new construction, re-roofing, sheet metal and roof repairs. 2013 rtrestone MASTER CONTRACTOR Partners in Quality www.bauenraafing.cam 303.297.3341 41 I n February, the Centers for Disease Control and Preven- tion released new guidelines for reopening schools and other public spaces. While COVID-19 is a respiratory disease, disinfecting the indoor air was not one of the solutions on its list of recommendations to stopping the spread of the pandemic. However, focusing on air quality is para- mount to stopping COVID-19 in its tracks. It’s not enough to move air around and add ventilation when we need to disinfect it. Disinfection through either ultraviolet light or ionization in the heating and cool- ing ducts is the answer to safely opening schools and businesses more quickly and affordably. The ability to disinfect air in any size indoor space is proven and available. Hospitals have been doing it for decades. Property manag- ers now are starting to turn to air purification technology providers to reduce “sick building syndrome” and improve indoor air quality at their buildings. This not only pre- vents the spread of pathogens but also reduces energy costs, which translates into cost savings for the needed economic recovery. Much like sunlight does in the atmosphere, improved indoor air quality through ultraviolet or bipo- lar ionization can deactivate air- borne viruses. Ultraviolet reduces the ability of pathogens to replicate, and bipolar ionization devices cre- ate millions of positive and negative ions in the air that attach to and inactivate the COVID-19 acellular microorganisms. Cleaning the air of germicides and limiting the spread of pathogens may become a world- wide effort among property owners, landlords and everyday home- owners. Medical experts say as COVID-19 variants continue to sur- face, vaccines may not achieve herd immunity soon enough, and some form of coro- navirus may live on like the flu for decades. The “new normal” may be high-tech, low-cost HVAC upgrades as part of standard building safety practices. Ventilation and disinfection are complicated when it comes to aligning the right technology and correctly integrating advanced fil- tration, air quality meters, energy recovery ventilators and econo- mizers with building management systems. A surprisingly small per- centage of HVAC service providers have the depth of engineering and expertise to improve IAQ effective- ly and affordably. Many air quality companies have developed indoor air quality as a service models. One option is to provide “mobile” disinfection with portable devices that can be installed so stand-alone or pack- aged terminal air conditioners disinfection can spread across the multiyear IAQ as a service that can run less than $10 per room per month. n How ionization works. Ions are all around us and serve as “ninjas” to go after COVID-19. An ion is a par- ticle, atom or molecule with a net electrical charge, and it is created naturally with energy from rush- ing water, crashing waves, lightning and sunlight. The concentration of these naturally occurring ions is much lower indoors than outdoors. When ions come into contact with a microorganism such as COVID-19, they attach to the “spikes” on the pathogen and disrupt its surface proteins, rendering it inactive. Since ion density is higher outdoors than indoors, ions are the reason that restaurants are encouraged to have outdoor dining. The higher the con- centration of ions, the higher the likelihood that they can connect and inactivate COVID-19 that is floating in the air. Ionization technology can be eas- ily retrofitted to existing HVAC duct systems in properties that can dis- tribute the higher density of ions to every room in a building. The key is to align the technology to the size of the air handling system in any given home, apartment, office, school or building to inactivate COVID-19. Independent research has shown that airborne bacteria and viruses – including COVID-19 – were reduced by 99% within min- utes of exposure to the systems. n Cost savings and climate change relief. The energy savings often more than cover the cost of the dis- Indoor UV tech can mitigate contagion spread Charlie Szoradi Chief technology officer, Purge Virus Please see Szoradi, Page 31