Power Up Connect - Blog #education

UVC: Keeping Students Safe in the Era of COVID-19

Mon, 30 Nov 2020 14:39:00 +0000

As schools are reopening, the number of children infected with COVID-19 is rising. Data from state health departments shows that the percentage of children infected has increased from 2.2% of all cases nationwide in April to 10% of all cases in September, and is on the rise.

Proper hand-washing, use of masks and following social distancing protocols are all important precautions taken to prevent the spread of COVD-19 and other pathogens, like those that cause the flu, in schools. However, devices are some of the most frequently touched surfaces we encounter daily, and yet, they can become an afterthought in terms of COVID-19 prevention.

Not only do kids rely on their phones to communicate with parents, many schools are using Chromebooks, tablets and other devices for students to complete classwork and assignments. Teachers might have a set of laptops for the classroom that are used by multiple students throughout the day, or computer rooms might have a set of tablets that students can borrow. These devices are constantly in use, traveling back and forth from home and school, on buses and in public spaces.

Our kids need these devices to learn and stay connected. A student’s biggest priorities should be homework assignments and fostering relationships with their peers—not worrying about whether their devices are clean and safe to use. Keeping phones, tablets and laptops clean is an important part of COVID-19 and flu prevention and another important measure to help keep students safe.

Unfortunately, devices are notoriously difficult to clean. Did you know that COVID-19 bacteria can live on laptops for up to 72 hours? Disinfecting wipes and sprays are convenient, but it is easy for students to miss or neglect to wipe every surface, like the crevices of a keyboard or the back of a tablet, making them ineffective. Improper or excessive use of disinfectant wipes and sprays can also potentially damage devices, leading to expensive replacement costs.Additionally, wipes are costly, wasteful and need to be constantly reordered and replaced. Proper device cleaning needs to be a long-term consideration, and wipes aren’t a good long-term solution.

The Power of UVC Disinfection

PowerUp’s Pure Zone UVC Disinfection Charging Carts have medical-grade UVC sanitization. It can charge a variety of devices and keep them secure while cleaning them using UVC light, so they are fully ready and safe to use whenever a student needs it. They are perfect for use in classrooms, libraries, computer labs and other convenient locations within schools. Our carts are a big-picture solution that can be useful not only during the pandemic, but also in the future to combat the common flu, colds and everyday germs.

UVC light technology has been used for decades in hospitals, labs and other medical settings. It is proven to eradicate viruses and bacteria by 99.9999%, and is especially effective at attacking airborne pathogens like COVID-19. The FDA cites that “UVC radiation has been shown to destroy the outer protein coating of the SARS-Coronvirus”. However, it isn’t commonly implemented in schools, yet.

“We have struggled in the past to see this highly effective, very safe technology fully implemented for airborne infections,” said Dr. Edward A. Nardell, a professor of global health and social medicine at Harvard Medical School. “We’ve done the studies. We know it works.”

PowerUp’s UVC Disinfection Charging Carts use this same technology to clean devices, emitting a 254nm UV light. The cart can disinfect a device in just 5 minutes, destroying the virus at the molecular level. It doesn’t leave any residue on devices and the carts are maintenance-free. Simply set the carts up wherever they are needed, and students can begin to clean their devices, while keeping them charged.

“Ultraviolet light mangles the genetic material in pathogens—DNA in bacteria and fungi, RNA in viruses—preventing them from reproducing. ‘You’ve killed it essentially,’ said William P. Bahnfleth, a professor of architectural engineering at Pennsylvania State University.”

We believe in taking every possible action that will help keep students safe and healthy. Our carts are a cost-effective, long-term solution that can help keep devices clean, charged and ready to use for our students.

Learn more about our UVC Disinfection Charging Carts, or contact us with questions

5 Reasons Your College or University Must Have Cell Phone Charging Stations

Wed, 30 Aug 2017 17:01:15 +0000

Ubiquitous in usage, smartphones on college campuses are also essential to the health, well-being, education, safety, and growth of a student population. Implementing a strategy to help keep those students (and their devices) powered on is critical to the expansion plans of a college or university. Centrally located charging kiosks, tables, and stations don’t just provide an essential service to students, but they also enable colleges and universities to analyze usage and crowd behavior, communicate in real-time, and foster long-term relationships between the students and the school. Let’s look at 5 ways that a smart charging strategy on your college or university campus would have an impact:

Keep Students Safe

A fully charged cell phone is the difference between life or death during an emergency on campus. By deploying charging stations strategically, Universities and Colleges can help keep students safe and connected during emergency situations. Using digital signage and a central administrator, the charging stations can also act as emergency information hubs, capable of delivery key information. At Power Up™, the remote management tool can be used to push out this type of messaging in real-time during emergencies and closings. The system can also display weather forecasts, RSS feeds, and a variety of other media.

Provide a Quality Education

With students frequently relying on technology (phones, laptops) during and after class for note-taking, research, and class information, running out of battery is the equivalent to missing class or running out of paper. Charging stations and kiosks in central lobbies, libraries, and study halls help students stay connected during class and with their study groups/partners. At The University of Alabama, Power Up™ charging kiosks were deployed to keep students focused on their education. “The kiosk gives students the opportunity to charge their devices for free while managing their busy schedules,” Nugent said. “I think we can all relate to when we’ve run out of battery power or forgotten our power cords at the worst possible time.”

Drive Recruits and Satisfaction Scores

It’s no surprise that students today are more closely connected to their phone for social and personal use than ever before. For colleges and universities, keeping students connected online to social networks is imperative to drive recruitment and satisfaction. Ralph Valle, Towson University’s director of marketing and communications, lauded the school’s initial placement of the Power Up™ Charging Kiosks on campus. “Since installing the Power Up™ cell-phone charging kiosk in our student union, a very high traffic area right in front of the entrance to our university book store, students have inundated us with positive feedback. It’s no secret that today’s college student spends a significant amount of their time – both personal and for their studies – on their smartphone, tablet or other mobile internet computing device, and Power Up′s kiosk provides them with a very convenient, secure, accessible resource for them to charge their device.”

Enable Real-time Communication

Smartphones provide instant access to all things happening at the college or university. Without a smart charging strategy in place, administrators are missing an opportunity to keep students connected. The University of Alabama has branded their Power Up™ kiosk with the school’s logo, social media links, and a QR (Quick Response) code to direct students to specific a landing page. Currently the kiosks display messages to the students that are controlled by a central administrator on campus. The Power Up™ digital signage solution allows for the staff to remotely change the content on all of the kiosks across campus from a central location.

Build School Spirit

By strategically planning the deployment of charging kiosks and tables, a college or university can directly impact school spirit and student satisfaction. By keeping cell phones charged, smart colleges and universities are driving more positive conversations online for all types of school-led events like sports, arts, and music. The more students are able to share their positive experiences, the better the brand of the college or university. At Towson University, officials installed a freestanding charging machine that also features a screen on which the university can display marketing messages. Towson’s model from Power Up™ provides devices with a rapid boost, delivering a quick charge in 10 minutes. “Inside Jordan-Hare stadium where the 2010 BCS National Championship Auburn Tigers play, students and fans are constantly using their mobile devices to update friends on the game, post messages via twitter and Facebook, or track scores from games around the country and with that having low batteries on their devices. With the thousands of visitors to the 87,000 seat Jordan-Hare stadium for every home game, this helps provide an excellent customer service amenity to fans and provides an additional revenue opportunity to the vendor and school,” said Ralph Valle. “Every time I walk around the corner, I see a couple of students sitting on the sofa getting their cell phone charged, so I say this is well worth it.”