The bubonic plague was a raging epidemic in the 14th century in Europe that killed over two hundred million people in Eurasia. Since that, great strides were made in medical technology over the decades, but the infectious epidemics are still fatal to our lives. World Health Organization(WHO) officially announced that an outbreak of SARS(Severe acute respiratory syndrome) in 2002 caused an annual 774 deaths in 37 countries, and 773 deaths associated with MERS-CoV(Middle East respiratory syndrome) were reported in January 2018.
Sanitation, therefore, is a must in public areas such as restrooms, banks and subways where it is vulnerable to such viruses. Then again, where is the most vulnerable place? According to the study result from an Australian sanitation service company, Earth Ecco, the escalator handrails harbors the most germs among other public areas. Because nobody knows who has held the handrails. Some people might hold a handrail without washing their hands after using the toilet or sneezing.
Previously, the escalator handrails were wiped with a cloth in person. In order to improve effective handrail cleaning, SWIT Inc., a South Korea-based firm, launched an escalator handrail sterilizer equipment ‘WECLEAN’. This was the world’s first IoT(Internet of Things)-combined handrail sterilizer that makes sure of the perfect removal of bacteria and viruses through 99.9% sterilization by UV Lamp. In addition, a 7-inch monitor shows the real-time hygienic condition of handrail audiovisually so that passengers can hold the handrail without fear of infection. That is, it’s not just cleaning handrail, but also WECLEAN shows cleaning status so that people want to hold the handrails voluntarily.
Moreover, as an IoT-combined comprehensive system, WECLEAN provides 24-hour monitoring service of escalators through mobile application and immediate alert will be sent to the administrator in case of an accident. Big data collection is another one. WECLEAN records the number of escalator users and provide the current location information to the passengers. With all these, the ultimate goal of SWIT Inc. is to lead advanced escalator culture.
Kyeong Ho Park, CEO of SWIT Inc., experienced that her young daughter licked a handrail and got virally infected. This was his main motivation in deciding to develop a escalator handrail sterilizer.
Since urbanization and industrialization has been a global trend, the escalator market will continue to grow. Therefore, effective handrail cleaning method is even more necessary. This multi-functional handrail sterilizer WECLEAN definitely deserves worldwide attention.
▲ SWIT Inc.
▲ Brand Name: WECLEAN
▲ CEO: Kyeong Ho Park
▲ www.weclean.co.kr
▲ E-mail: serwoo@serwoo.com
▲ T: +82-2-1544-2830
Erika Jeon
Asia Journal
(Los Angeles Times Advertising Supplement)
