Disinfection of ventilation air in the administration part of the production site of LIEBHERR Bulgaria
The challenge
Due to the challenges imposed by the epidemic of COVID-19, industrial customers are looking for a reliable way to guarantee the health of their employees and prevent the spread of viruses throughout their premises.
The nature of the virus makes it easy to transfer and travel through the air. Closed spaces with ventilation are especially vulnerable and pose a real risk for spreading the virus among the employees. Liebherr Bulgaria was looking for a safe and effective way to disinfect the ventilation air and thus to prevent an outbreak of the virus on its premises.
Liebherr Bulgaria turned to Veolia for an indoor air quality solution to address this challenge.
Veolia’s solution
The existing Air Handling Unit (AHU) provides ventilation air (flow rate 17 000 m³/h) for the factory’s administration.
It is operated in two regimes:
- Summer: supplying 100% fresh air
- Winter: supplying 100% recirculated air
UV-C radiation is a known disinfectant for air, water, and nonporous surfaces. In addition, UV-C radiation has effectively been used for decades to reduce the spread of bacteria, such as tuberculosis.
To produce a sufficient radiation doze for the objective, 20 pcs of UV lamps have been selected (with a view of the geometric configuration, the air velocity, the common viruses’ trajectory).
The technical solution and the configuration of the installation components are customs designed by the engineering team of Veolia Solutions Bulgaria – for the specific layout of the AHU and the selected lamps.
Plovdiv, Bulgaria
Type: Design & Build
≥ 90% Viruses and bacteria elimination
17 000 mᶟ/h Flow rate
The benefits
Improvement of the indoor air quality due to the successful disinfection of the ventilated air with the deactivation/elimination of ≥90% of the "COVID-19" viruses by illuminating the supply air with UV-C radiation, produced by lamps installed in the AHU.
An additional automation solution has been implemented, switching the UV lamps "ON" only in recirculation mode of the AHU (i.e. in winter regime when most of the supply air is from recirculation). This functionality reduces the Client's OPEX by saving electricity and prolonging the lamps' operating lifetime.
Preventing the spread of diseases
Increased health standards in the company
Increased overall health of the employees