Leading specialist in creating and maintaining healthy indoor environments, Vivoteq Middle East, launched its new ‘Hotel Safe by Vivoteq’ package, featuring the company’s signature product Pathene Plus, at the World Green Tourism.

The EPA-registered non-toxic, water-based, bio-static surface protectant spray is odourless, colourless and kills any microbes which land on it for months after application.

The price hotels pay for preventative measures is much less than the cost to fix the physical and reputational damage caused by a full-scale fungus invasion, the company said.

The exhibition began on December 5 will come to a close today (December 7).

Steve Ashby, managing director of Vivoteq Middle East, said mould and fungus are invading some hotels in the UAE, appearing on wallpaper, furniture, headboards and skirting, causing millions of dirhams worth of damage, resulting in harmful impact on indoor air quality.

“In these days of ‘superbugs’ and microbial cross contamination, it is critical that hotel operators protect their guests and staff alike by maintaining a healthy indoor environment, well beyond what normal cleaning practices have provided in the past,” said Ashby.

“We have seen internal relative humidity levels in some UAE hotels reach as high as 70 per cent – fungus starts growing when this exceeds 60 per cent. Hotel air conditioning systems that are not capable of providing sufficient dry air to the rooms, can often lose 20-30 per cent of the treated air through leaks in the ductwork,” he said. 

“The use of organic wallpaper, unsealed timber in headboards, artwork and furniture, lack of anti-fungal sealants on building materials, dirty air conditioning systems and leaks in the building enable spores to enter and grow, leading to rapid and widespread infestation.”

Ashby said hotels which take preventative action can capitalise by promoting themselves as environmentally clean. “Hotel visitors are becoming more aware of environmental pollutants and the risks of cross-contamination, and it is a huge market advantage for hotels in the GCC to be able to advertise the cleanest, safest hotel rooms in the region, suitable for allergy sufferers, children and elderly folk.”

When it is applied to every surface in the hotel room, including beds and soft furnishings, rooms can be treated and safely returned to housekeeping within 60 minutes.

“We’re participating at World Green Tourism to demonstrate how our new package can provide higher levels of protection against harmful dust, dust mites, bacteria, viruses, fungi and many other microorganisms which are in the air or on the surfaces of hotel rooms,” said Ashby. “Hotel Safe by Vivoteq will guarantee allergy sufferers and other guests a safe, comfortable stay.” – TradeArabia News Service