SARNIA, Ontario — Canadian college researchers finished a 14-month project to test a method to remove bacteria and fungi from firefighter.
Sani Sport — which is used to clean gear used by NHL and NFL teams — has been working with Lambton College’ Fire and Public Safety Centre of Excellence researchers to adapt its sanitization technology for use on firefighting gear.
Research results show Sani Sport cleaning cabinet can eliminate 92 percent of bacteria and 95 percent of fungi from bunker gear in a 30- to 60-minute cleaning rotation, according to the report.
Challenges addressed throughout the project included testing the effective application of ozone disinfection and deodorization on soft fabrics and redesigning existing Sani Sport cabinets to better accommodate and treat firefighting and turnout gear, as well as hazardous materials entry suits, Lambton said in a news release. The effect of repeated ozone exposure on the integrity and fabric stability of the gear was also put to the test.
College biologists grew bacteria to implant on the bunker gear before it was washed in the cabinet. Modifications were made over the course of the study.
“If this is going to be the next generation of cleaning system for firefighter gear, this can be a massive market for (Sani Sport), and not only in Canada but in North America and aboard, so this is quite a new market for them and so they’re quite excited,” Mehdi Skeikhzadeh, the college’s dean of applied research and innovation, said.
While more modifications still need to be made before commercialization, Skeikhzadeh said Sani Sport has its own production facility that will allow them to easily make the changes.
“We hope to have these machines commercially available for the North American firefighting community before the end of the year,” said Steve Silver, president of Sani Defenx, a division of Sani Sport, in a release.
The Ontario Centre of Excellence and Natural Sciences and the Engineering Research Council of Canada funded the study.