Meet Aether: The air purifying light fitting that eliminates 99.995% of airborne viruses

In the battle against the pandemic, Australian company Pierlite shows how air purifying lighting solutions can keep more healthcare environments safe.

As Omicron cases surge across Australia, healthcare providers now have a very different set of safety challenges on their hands. The high transmissibility of Omicron means providers must not only treat more infected patients, but also avoid workforce shortages by better protecting clinical staff.

Reducing airborne transmission is critical to the solution. More than ever, healthcare providers must provide occupants with air that is safe and free of pathogens.

In hospital wards and emergency departments, air safety has long been a focus, with strict airflow and disinfection protocols already in-place. Despite this, spaces such as waiting rooms, consultation rooms, bathrooms and corridors are often left unprotected. With Omicron, we can no longer take chances.

This year must see healthcare providers increase air safety coverage to all rooms, no matter the size, using localised medical grade UV-C light and HEPA air purification solutions.

At the forefront of these air quality solutions is the Aether LED Troffer, a state-of-the-art air purifying luminaire that is easily installed in regular hospital or healthcare ceiling grids. Aether is developed by Pierlite, an Australian provider of lighting and technology solutions to healthcare organisations for over 70-years.

Pierlite believes the presence of ceiling lights in all healthcare environments today makes lighting the perfect vehicle to deliver safer, pathogen-free air.

“It’s true that Australian healthcare facilities have always had protocols to minimise virus transmission indoors, but this is not the case in all rooms. Outside infectious disease wards, bathrooms, corridors, consulting rooms and even waiting rooms are exposing occupants to risk,” said Lydell Stokes, Pierlite’s National Manager – Future Markets.

“Most healthcare environments already have modular ceiling lighting. With Aether, hospitals can leverage this infrastructure to deploy a best-in-class, medical-grade solution that has been proven to inactivate and remove 99.995 per cent of airborne pathogens. This means better patient outcomes, healthier staff and less risk.”

Features of Aether LED Troffer

Pierlite’s Aether LED Troffer is a medical grade smart fitting that functions as a traditional luminaire. It utilises LED modules to beautifully illuminate indoor spaces. It is, however, Aether’s air purification capabilities that make it a truly groundbreaking technology.

The Aether luminaire contains an active air flow system with a separate air inlet and outlet on either side of the fitting and an air chamber in its centre. Using a quiet, long-lasting motor, air is actively drawn from the room into the air chamber, where it is exposed to ultraviolet (UV-C) radiation that instantly kills bacteria cells and inactivates viruses by damaging their DNA.

The air then passes through a medical grade H13 HEPA filter, which traps and removes harmful pathogens. Clean air then safely returns back to the room.

Last year, an independent study by Germany’s Biotech Gmbh Lab verified that with just a single pass-through, Aether successfully inactivated and removed 99.995 per cent of harmful pathogens from the air. In a second trial using the TGA-recommended human coronavirus HCoV-229E, Aether reduced the viral load during a single passage with an inactivation rate of over 99.9 per cent.

Benefits of Aether LED Troffer

• Purpose-built for Australian hospitals and healthcare providers
• Clinically proven to inactivate and remove 99.995% of pathogens from the air
• Easily installed in ceiling grids present in Australian hospitals
• Dual UV-C and HEPA filter purification system
• Designed to operate continuously and safely in occupied rooms
• Easy maintenance with replaceable UV-C LED module and HEPA filter
• Provides smart air quality and energy usage analytics in real-time

As healthcare providers prepare to tackle a new wave of safety challenges, best-in-class technologies like Aether can be relied upon to make indoor environments safe.

Learn more about Aether at https://www.pierlite.com.au/supporting-safer-environments.