Next time you walk into a store, take a glance down at the door handle. If it’s wrapped with striped vinyl, breathe a little easier. You just might be a little more protected against germs.
As businesses slowly begin opening up after more than two months due to the coronavirus pandemic, some business owners are installing a specialized antimicrobial film on high-touch surfaces in the hopes of warding off COVID-19. This film is made with silver ions and proven to destroy bacteria on surfaces.
The coating hasn’t been tested against COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus. But according to the French company Hexis, which manufacturers the antimicrobial film under the name PURE ZONE, it’s been tested to neutralize 99.99 percent of bacteria such as E-coli, salmonella, listeria, staph and MRSA.
The film has recently caught the attention of businesses across the country, showing up everywhere from gyms to real estate offices to pet stores. Robert Hutchinson, general manager of Six-Eight Creative, a Richmond, Va., custom vinyl shop, says he’s had more than a dozen orders across the state in the past month or so.
Fairly New in the United States
Hutchinson first heard about the film about three years ago, before it was available in the United States. In November, he heard that it was now available in America. When states started shutting down in March and his business slowed, he ordered a roll of the film and began letting customers know. A few jobs turned into many as the word spread.
As businesses slowly reopen, they’re doing so with new safety and cleanliness measures in place, such as extra sanitizing and UV light cleaners. For some shop owners, the film is seen as part of that.
“It’s not going to make us stop cleaning, but I figured it wouldn’t hurt,” says Amanda Wilbourne, owner of Nautical Dog, a Williamsburg, Va., pet shop that was one of the first businesses in Virginia to have the film installed. “Maybe ease some anxiety for some people. We’re just trying to make everyone feel comfortable and keep ourselves safe.”
The film itself is a thin, adhesive-backed laminate that can be applied as is, or put over vinyl. Hutchinson can customize the vinyl to match a company’s colors, using a pattern that is actually enlarged fingerprints. Because it goes around small, intricate places, the film needs to be professionally applied, much like putting a vinyl wrap on a vehicle. The film’s antimicrobial properties stay active for five years, according to the manufacturer, but the film should still be cleaned regularly.
A Visual Reminder
At Nautical Dog, the film ― over blue and white vinyl ― covers door handles, the counter area, freezer handles and on the iPad screen where people sign their names after using a credit card (there, it’s clear). It’s also on jar lids and scoops at the shop’s self-serve dog cookie bar.
It’s also a good visual reminder,” Hutchinson says. “I know if I grab a door handle, to grab where the vinyl is.”
At Iron Bound Gym, also in Williamsburg, the vinyl ― red and white, for the gym’s colors ― adorns door and toilet handles as well as water fountains, covering the long buttons that activate the water. Clear film covers credit card terminals.
Scott Grafton, who owns Iron Bound Gym, says clients ― once fitness centers are given the green light to open back up for indoor use ― will still have to clean their hands on the way in and out of the gym. But he hopes the vinyl, like the new air quality system he installed, makes people feel a little more safe.
“All the awareness these days is going to help in and by itself,” Grafton says. “When clients come back, we want them to feel safe.”
Catching On Throughout the Country
Hutchinson has talked to vinyl shop owners around the country, including in Texas, South Carolina and New York, who have been increasingly installing the film.
Beau Battin, marketing director for Scorpion Window Film in Cloverdale, Ind., says the film allows businesses to openly display their dedication to cleanliness. “Keeping the world clean and free of harmful germs is more important than ever before,” he wrote on the company’s blog.
“The COVID-19 pandemic was a wake-up call that brought sanitation to the forefront of nearly everyone’s mind,” Battin wrote. “That means that maintaining a clean environment is no longer a luxury. It’s a necessity.”