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British-made fibreboard helps in battle with Covid-19
A popular recycled material, already used in thousands of schools and workplaces, has been found to be coronavirus-free shortly after transmission occurs, according to independent laboratory tests.
Fibreboard from Sundeala – invented and manufactured in the UK – is 100% free from human coronavirus, both internally and externally, in less than five minutes after infection, without any intervention.
Indoor Biotechnologies carried out tests on Sundeala’s FR fibreboard in August this year. The Cardiff-based laboratory developed a testing method that would establish not only how long coronavirus persists on the surface of the board but also how long the virus persists within the board. Human coronavirus, cultured in cells derived from human lung tissue, was used for all the tests. Measurements taken five minutes after the virus was applied to the boards were found to have no virus on the surface or within the board itself.
Sundeala’s fibreboard is 100% virus free in less than five minutes of infection with human coronavirus, without any intervention / Picture: Sundeala
It is not known for certain yet why the virus cannot survive on the board for longer than a few minutes when it has been found to survive for far longer on other surfaces. For example, a National Institutes of Health (NIH) study found the virus may survive for up to 24 hours on cardboard and up to three days on plastic and stainless-steel. Sundeala believes that resistance is due to the board’s unique blend of recycled porous natural fibres and metal minerals, which also make it fire retardant.
Joanne Mulloy, director of Sundeala, said: “Our boards are used everywhere, from university halls of residence through to prisons and factories, so we’re happy that we can reassure customers that our fibreboard supports the containment of viral spread. Used as partition screens and door push plates it can help to keep high touch surfaces virus-free and can easily be repurposed in the future.
“Many businesses are buying barriers to stop the spread of Covid in their workplaces. As a UK manufacturer, we want to promote the use of sustainable British-made materials over imported plastics – it keeps money in our economy where it’s most needed.”
Indoor Biotechnologies is an ISO 17025 compliant global immunodiagnostics and biotechnology company that has been awarded an Innovate UK grant to expand their work on Covid-19 T-cell testing. Tests were performed on multiple occasions, at various time points across multiple board samples to ensure the results were scientifically robust.
Sundeala fibreboard was invented in the UK in 1898. All Sundeala boards are manufactured in the UK and are completely circular in nature, being both recycled and fully recyclable.