Cleanliness and ease of cleaning have always been some of the biggest selling points for our shower pods. An Advanced Showers pod takes seconds to clean. The tough GRP structure is impervious to detergents and cleaning fluids, so you just spray the shower pod down, give it a rinse, and you’re good to go. And, importantly, there are no cracked tiles and grouting to act as havens for mould and bacteria.

Building on this, and on the increased emphasis on hygiene during the pandemic – especially in hospitals, care homes, universities and schools – we are delighted to announce that as a special order all new shower pods can be manufactured with an additional layer of inbuilt antimicrobial protection.

How To Make Our Shower Pods Even Safer And More Hygienic?

We recently entered discussions with several suppliers of antimicrobial treatments for plastics, paints and coatings. The idea was to imbue our shower pods with integral protection to a wide range of moulds, fungi, bacteria, and viruses by treating the GRP itself with an antimicrobial agent. This would make our shower pod range even more hygienic and safe – reducing the time and expense needed to clean our units still further.

After extensive research, we found the most promising product was Biomaster, from Addmaster – a UK manufacturer of food-safe additives for commercial products and appliances. Addmaster stood out in the industry for safety, efficiency, and ecological sustainability, their membership of the Society of Food Hygiene & Technology, and their up-to-date ISO accreditations.

Research And Evaluation

We purchased some samples of Biomaster and did a controlled test on six GRP samples, some treated and some untreated, to assess how well the treatment stood up to the common contaminants found in shower rooms. We were extremely impressed with the results, with the treated samples showing a drastic reduction in the presence of dangerous microbes. We found that, unlike some antimicrobial treatments, that Biomaster sustained its efficiency over time, with the antimicrobial potential spread evenly across the entire surface material. In practical tests on shower pods, this prevents colonies of mould, bacteria and viruses taking hold, and increases the efficiency of cleaning products.

We have now been granted ISO 22196 approval for Biomaster protection on our shower cubicles, and are in the process of implementing the treatment to special order products.

How Does Biomaster Work?

Quite simply, the presence of Biomaster prevents bacteria and microorganisms from being able to survive on a surface. The compound is purchased in powder form and is integrated with the plastic (or GRP, in our case) at the manufacturing stage, where it forms a permanent part of the component itself. When a bacteria or virus contacts a Biomaster-treated surface, ions within the compound attack the microorganism in three ways:

• Firstly, they bind to the cell wall of the microbe, preventing growth and the absorption of food;
• Secondly, the ions interrupt enzyme production, preventing the microbe from producing energy, and;
• Thirdly, the ions corrupt the microbe’s DNA, preventing replication and effectively causing it to self-destruct.

Find Out More

Biomaster is a simple but effective solution to shower hygiene, and makes our shower pod range even more efficient for use in high-risk environments where stringent levels of cleanliness are essential. If you’d like to find out more about our commitment to continual health and safety improvements, or are interested in discussing our shower pod solutions, please give one of our technical sales team a call today.

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