26.11.2021
-
New technological solutions for optimising indoor air quality and minimising airborne transmission of pathogens.
-
Environmental factors account for 23% of deaths (12.6 million people).
-
SARS-Cov-2 has shown the importance of adequate monitoring, ventilation and air conditioning systems to ensure the safety of people indoors.
Bilbao, 22nd November of 2021. Clean air is essential for our health, as well as that of the environment. That is why the EU sets standards to prevent the accumulation of excessive concentrations of pollution. After having found that air pollution is more harmful to the health of citizens than was believed years ago, the WHO decided several months ago to issue new air quality recommendations that are stricter than those currently in force, lowering most of the recommended levels of pollutants in the air with respect to those set in 2005.
As a key part of the European Green Deal, the EU is revising its air quality standards and norms to bring them more in line with the recommendations of the World Health Organisation.
With the support of the HAZITEK programme of the Basque Government's Department of Economic Development, Sustainability and Environment, the consortium that makes up the AIRSAFE project aims to offer society safe and healthy environments in areas of everyday use; public buildings, hospitals, residences, schools..., through new technological solutions for the optimisation of indoor air quality.
The AIERSAFE project aims to optimise air conditioning installations for environmental and operational indicators and provide new tools to improve indoor air quality and its impact on health. New innovative solutions will be developed in the field of sensor technology, equipment and management tools (operation & maintenance) for ventilation and air conditioning installations. Using Big Data and the opportunities derived from Artificial Intelligence applied to air conditioning and indoor air quality control, they will manage to offer correlations between indirect measurements that can be monitored by continuous sensors and the presence of pathogens, microorganisms and toxic or harmful substances for people's health in the environment.
Zero Pollution Strategy
Pollution damages our health and our planet and represents the main environmental cause of multiple physical and mental illnesses as well as premature deaths. To steer the EU towards the 2050 goal of a healthy planet for healthy people, the "Zero Pollution Strategy" sets key targets for 2030 to reduce pollution at source and in comparison with the current situation.
The European Commission has detailed as the basis of the action plan, the priority and objective to reduce deaths caused by air pollution by 55% by 2030 and to promote the protection of ecosystems and biodiversity from the harmful effects of air pollution by 25%.
Indoor air quality and benefits for Basque Industry
Given that it is estimated that in advanced countries people spend an average of 90% of their time indoors, this is a highly relevant issue in terms of their well-being.
In 2016, an update of a global and transparent study of the number of annual deaths due to environmental factors was carried out. This study concluded that 23% of deaths (12.6 million people) and 22% of DALYs (number of years lost due to illness, disability or premature death) were due to environmental factors. An OECD study estimates the annual cost of environmental pollution at 0.3% of gross domestic product, including absenteeism and sickness costs. It is common knowledge that air pollution affects health and can cause certain respiratory diseases. But what is less well known is that certain pollutants can have a negative influence on our nervous system, reducing our cognitive capacity and, consequently, our professional or academic performance.
On top of all this, there is the situation created by the outbreak of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. All research has shown that it is spread through the exhalation of droplets and very small respiratory particles that contain the virus and can subsequently be inhaled by other people or deposited in their eyes, nose or mouth (Centre for Disease Control and Prevention), with indoor spaces therefore being the most dangerous for its spread, thus demonstrating once again the need for new technologies that allow us to solve the problems arising from the aerial transmission of pathogens.
AIRSAFE proyect
It proposes the development of different systems such as new sensors, new equipment and new management tools based on the most advanced smart industry technology with the aim of providing both companies and users with tools that will enable them to face the challenges of this new situation. AIRSAFE will also enable companies in the Basque Country's HVAC sector and its ancillary companies to increase their competitiveness in a demanding market, creating new products and services based on digitalisation.
All of this will boost their commercial and operating activities, with a potential increase in turnover of an average of 9% per year in the six years following completion of the project. The consortium considers that the AIRSAFE project will have a driving and diversifying effect on the economic fabric of the Basque Country, directly favouring job creation. Similarly, the companies in the consortium consider the project as a key opportunity to promote the internalisation of their sector in particular and the Basque economy in general.
Finally, everything will be translated into the development of Advanced Products, Services and Solutions for Climate Control and Intelligent Industry kilometre zero developed entirely in the Basque Country, favouring the external image of our territory and innovation fabric.
Consortium
Led by AIRLAN, with the collaboration of companies specialising in the air conditioning sector, gas detection and monitoring and energy efficiency management processes, GIROA, FIDEGAS, WATTIO. Companies specialising in automation and control products and services, Big Data and Artificial Intelligence, INGETEK and ZYLK. Biotechnology companies, BIOTALDE and APA. In addition to Fundación Matia and Ikastolen Elkartea as direct representatives of the application areas selected to validate the solutions developed during the project.
On the other hand, the consortium of companies will have the technological support of Vicomtech, specialised in Artificial Intelligence, Visual Computing and Interaction technologies applied to Smart Industry and Health, among others. CEIT, a multidisciplinary technology centre and international benchmark with great capacity to contribute to the consortium. Matia Instituto, with great scientific knowledge and innovation capacity in the field of social and health care, and Aclima, Basque Environment Cluster which, as a benchmark in the eco-industry and environmental products and services, will act as an intermediary agent for technology and knowledge transfer between companies.