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VDS Validated Disinfection System: Revolutionary Automated Thermal system for Surface Disinfection of Hospital equipment

Project description

A quick and effective way to disinfect micro-organisms

Some of the worst antibiotic-resistant micro-organisms are more commonly found in hospitals and healthcare clinics than anywhere else. In fact, hospitals (intensive care units included) are an important breeding ground for these germs. Unfortunately, current cleaning and disinfection methods have proven ineffective in killing these micro-organisms and preventing their spread. The EU-funded VDS project will develop an automated precision cleaning system that uses robots and steam to validate cleaning and disinfection quality. Currently in the prototype stage, this novel solution does not require any chemicals and uses less than 12 litres of water. It also cleans and disinfect in just six minutes, whereas current cleaning and disinfection processes require on average 30 litres of water,use a lot of chemicals, take more than 20 minutes and are physically demanding on workers. In addition, the VDS is able to process high-tech beds (IPX-4), while the traditional solutions can only handle wash-resistant beds (IPX-6).

Objective

80,000 people across Europe contract at least one Healthcare-Associated Infection (HAI). 37,000 people in Europe die from so-called super bacterium (USA 99,000 deaths). Annual financial losses are estimated at €7 billion in Europe, including direct costs, reflecting 16 million extra days of hospital stay and $6.5 billion in the USA. This problem can be dealt with using efficient and effective cleaning and disinfection systems. Current cleaning and disinfection methods, however, are neither efficient nor effective. They use on average 30 litres of water, are not consistent, take more than 20 minutes and are physically demanding on workers. They employ toxic chemicals/detergents and most hospitals do not follow recommendations for their appropriate use. These cleaning methods are also energy craving and are not possible for advanced hospital beds and mattresses. WEBER Hospital Systems is developing a solution to these challenges – VDS. It is an automated, precision cleaning system combining environmental sustainability, performance consistency, validated cleaning and disinfection quality using steam. Our value proposition is a system that does not require any chemicals, uses less than 12 litres of water and less than 5kW of power, has a quick cleaning process – 6 minutes, is automated, reduces cost of ownership by 35%, uses robotic precision, is fully auditable and reduces overall carbon footprint by 65%. Target users are the hospitals. The Washer-Disinfectors market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.4% in ten years and will reach €6.15Bn in 2028. Our initial market is Europe. VDS is currently at prototype stage. The purpose of the Accelerator project is to carry out system optimization, validation and certification, along with pre-commercialisation activities. Our market share is projected at 2-3% of the global market with cumulative revenues of €97.6 million by 2025. It will create employment for 133 people.

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Programme(s)

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Topic(s)

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Funding Scheme

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SME-2b - SME Instrument (grant only and blended finance)

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Call for proposal

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(opens in new window) H2020-EIC-SMEInst-2018-2020

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Coordinator

WEBER HOSPITAL SYSTEMS BV
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 1 641 885,00
Address
DE CORANTIJN 4
1689 AP ZWAAG
Netherlands

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SME

The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.

Yes
Region
West-Nederland Noord-Holland Kop van Noord-Holland
Activity type
Private for-profit entities (excluding Higher or Secondary Education Establishments)
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 2 693 042,50

Participants (1)

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