Building Design & Construction, March 31, 2021
As more is known about COVID-19, preventive measures continue to emerge and compete.
The engineering firm NV5, which provides third-party verification on WELL v2 projects for the Green Business Certification Institute, has been recommending to its clients Safe Traces, a solution that uses DNA-based sprays and sensors to verify engineering and HVAC controls for airborne contaminants. Its veriDART control verification uses “aerosol mobility indicators” to identify hotspots, assess ventilation and filtration, and inform remediations.
On January 15, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced approval of an emergency exemption request for the use of Grignard Pure, which claims to be the first-ever antimicrobial air treatment solution. Georgia and Tennessee were the first states granted exemptions to use Grignard Pure in certain indoor spaces. Another 17 states have expressed interest, according to Etienne Grignard, co-founder and CEO of Grignard Company in Rahway, N.J., whom BD+C interviewed in February.
“There’s no limit to where we can use it. The issue is just scaling the equipment to the system to which it is being deployed,” declares Mitchel Simpler, PE, FACEP, a Partner with Jaros, Baum & Bolles (JB&B), one of four engineering firms—the others being STV, ME Engineers, and Cosentini Associates—that comprise Grignard Pure’s engineering steering committee.
