News
Contamination Control: Biocidal Product Directive - Current Status
Objectives of the Biocidal Products Directive (98/8/EC)
The Biocidal Products Directive (BPD) entered into force in the European Union on 14th May 2000. The Directive aims to provide a harmonized single regulatory framework for placing biocidal products on the market in the European Union (EU). Its objective is to ensure a high level of human and environmental protection while safeguarding the EU market competitiveness.
BPD gives a formal definition to biocidal products: ‘Active substances and preparations containing one or more active substances put up in the form in which they are supplied to the user, intended to destroy, deter, render harmless, prevent the action of, or otherwise exert a controlling effect on any harmful organism by chemical or biological means.’
23 different types of biocidal products come into the scope of BPD, including among others disinfectants.
Mechanism of the Biocidal Products Directive
The BPD uses a two-stage regime consisting of evaluation of biocidal active substances and biocidal products.
Active substances undergo an evaluation and approval program on European Community level before being included into Annex I of the Directive for the use in certain in certain product types.
Thus, Annex I provides a positive list of substances approved for use in biocidal products.
After Annex I inclusion of the active substance biocide products containing this substance will need to be authorized under the BPD to get a marketing approval.
For a product to be authorized for marketing it must prove that it is sufficiently effective against harmful organisms, imposes no unacceptable effects on human health and on the environment.
Once the product is approved by the national authority of the first member state, it should be authorized by national authorities of the other member states in a procedure of mutual recognition.
Current status with regard to BPD
At the moment active substance dossiers are reviewed by the European Commission for approval and inclusion of the active substances into Annex I of the directive.
After inclusion of an active substance into Annex I, it is possible to submit a dossier for a biocidal product containing this substance to apply for the authorization in the European countries.
During the transition period to gain the authorization under BPD, biocide products already marketed in the countries remain on the market.
ECOLAB biocidal products under BPD
Ecolab harmonized the European biocide product portfolio and will support these biocide products under the BPD.
These biocide products are placed on the market in the European Union complying with the local biocide legislation and will be continued in compliance with BPD in the future.
Hospitality: NEW Wash 'n Walk– A Revolutionary Floor Cleaner
A new floor cleaner that digests the greasy build up on floors and is proven to increase the friction of slippery kitchen quarry tiles is set to revolutionise floor cleaning and could help avoid accidents caused by slipping.
WASH ‘N WALK eliminates the ingrained cause of slippery floors with a continuous enzyme action which builds up after each application. Based on patent-pending technology, WASH ‘N WALK degrades deep down grease deposits making floors clean and safe. Cleaning is carried out with cold water and rinsing is not necessary as WASH’N WALK continues to work breaking down even the most tenacious grease and grime.
The UK launch of WASH’N WALK is timely as the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has just initiated the “Shattered Lives” campaign targeting people working in and managing kitchens. The campaign aims to raise awareness of the risks and help those involved to take action to prevent slips, trips and falls. For more information on this campaign go to http://www.hse.gov.uk/slips/index.htm
Effective floor cleaning is a major component of the campaign and the HSE says: “Most slips happen on wet or dirty floors, anything that gets onto the floor needs to be removed quickly and effectively. Ensure cleaning is carried out in the correct manner using the right products and equipment.”
According to Nick Burchell, Marketing Manager at ECOLAB, WASH ‘N WALK is “the right product as its unique formula combines biological ingredients with traditional cleaning agents to eat away the build-up of grease commonly found in restaurants and food service operations. It is pH neutral so there is no chemical damage to the floor. Application is with a mop so minimum investment in cleaning equipment is needed. And with no rinsing required, there is a potential 90% reduction in water usage.”
Ruth Nattress, Hospitality Manager at De Vere Hotel, Slaley Hall, Northumberland was a WASH ‘N WALK triallist and commented: “There has been consistent progress in the cleanliness and appearance of the whole floor since we began four weeks ago. Feedback from the kitchen staff …is very positive. The floor has definitely improved and is now less slippery. The grout and tiles are much cleaner. The product is yet another successful Ecolab gem!!”
HSE statistics show that slipping and tripping are the single most common cause of major injury in UK workplaces, with around 11,000 major injuries each year. People working in foodservice are more likely to be injured through slips and trips than anything else. The costs to industry are substantial in both financial and human terms. Ecolab is supporting the HSE “Shattered Lives” campaign and distributing HSE “Stop Slips in Kitchens” posters to customers.
FOR A TRIAL OR MORE INFORMATION, TALK TO ONE OF THE ECOLAB TEAM
Healthcare: Infection Prevention Nursing Award Winner
Neil Emery, National Sales Manager of Ecolab presented the British Journal of Nursing (BJN) Infection Prevention Award to Kim Shaw an infection control nurse from South Essex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust at the prestigious BJN Awards ceremony in London on May 16th.
Entries were open to individuals or teams, and took the form of a 1,000 word statement as to why the entrant should win the Infection Prevention award. The judges were impressed with the high standard of entries. Competition was fierce and three entries were shortlisted by the BJN Editorial Board.
The judging panel said that “Kim Shaw has put in place rigorous measures to ensure the safety of patients and staff within the South Essex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. Her dedication to developing new and innovative ways to educate the staff has ensured that the trust has an excellent record in infection control.”
The other two short-listed entries were from the Infection Prevention Team, Southampton General Hospital and Sarah Mimmack of the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Birmingham.
This award is especially prestigious due to the relationship the BJN has with the Infection Prevention Society. All members of the IPS received entry forms and the award was made in partnership with the IPS.
Says Kate Cassidy, Marketing Manager at Ecolab Healthcare UK: “This is the 9th year of the British Journal of Nursing Clinical Practice Awards and the first time that Ecolab has become involved. The event is about giving Infection Control Nurse Specialists the recognition they deserve and to reward clinical excellence in an extremely important area of healthcare. The awards highlight the excellent standards of care achieved on a daily basis.”
Healthcare: Stocks of Aquasept have now run out
The well publicised withdrawal of Aquasept from the UK health market creates a potential problem for those responsible for skin decolonization in hospitals.
Last year Ecolab announced the 'straight swap' option for pharmacists and Infection Control Teams, who will now be seeking alternatives as stocks of Aquasept have completely run out. One of our well established brands, Skinsan, is available now as a direct replacement for Aquasept. More importantly, it provides the same level of decontamination without Infection Control teams having to alter codes of practice or retrain staff.
Skinsan is the only alternative skin decolonizer which contains triclosan as its active ingredient. The familar 5 day treatment regime is the same with Skinsan as Aquasept, so staff and patients can adhere to the same familiar useage guidelines (Skinsan passes EN1499, the European benchmark test for antimicrobial efficacy).
For further information, or to place your order, please contact our customer service team on 0113 287 8339, or visit www.skinsan.co.uk.
Food & Beverage: REACH
The Regulation (EC/1907/2006), REACH, came into force on 1st June 2007 to simplify the vast array of legislation covering the use of chemical substances in the EU.
These regulations are far-reaching and will be phased in over the next ten years. At Ecolab we are very active, taking all the necessary steps in good time to ensure our products meet all the requirements. Ecolab customer can feel secure we are ontop of this issue and we will keep everyone informed in a timely manner of any important information. For more information please review the REACH Cleaner, Safer, Healthier document, downloadable here.
Hospitality: We are Certified
Norviruses (also referred to as Norwalk) are highly contagious and cause serious vomiting and diarrhoea. They are particularly prevalent in closed environments (such as hospitals, cruise ships and now hotels).
The strains of Norovirus are spread very easily by person-to-person contact, eating contaminated food or contact with contaminated surfaces.
The viruses are very difficult to eliminate, so it’s extremely good news that Ecolab products Desguard 20 and Oasis Pro 20 have certification for their efficacy against Feline Calicivirus (FCV), surrogate of Norovirus.
It is effective with just a 5 minute contact time (at 3% solution).
Pest Elimination: Ecolab launches a unique Small Fly Service at Hotelympia 2008
Ecolab's UK and Ireland Pest Elimination Division is launching a completely new and unique service to eliminate small flies, including fruit and drain flies.
This service not only treats adult small flies – the usual approach – but also includes a fully integrated sanitising service that also treats the breeding sites, killing small flies at the source of the problem.
Flies move from filth to food causing food poisoning or disease, and around 60% of food service sites have issues with small flies breeding indoors. These breeding sites can be as small as a thumbnail but failure to locate and treat them could mean perpetual reinfestation. A good and thorough cleaning method, specialist technical expertise and equipment are vital to eliminate breeding sites, as is a coordinated approach with the customer.
Directly targeted towards pubs or bars, restaurants, hotels, or catering establishments, this service helps to reduce the risks of food poisoning and transmitted diseases, poor customer satisfaction, failed health and safety inspections, and loss of revenue due to spoiled produce or closures. Ecolab’s Small Fly Service defends against fly infestations through a comprehensive, full service approach that targets small flies in all phases of their life cycle, the four step approach is;
Sanitise, to reduce bacteria on non-food contact surfaces where flies may breed
Wash, to remove larva food sources
Apply, approved pesticide products on non-food contact surfaces to help prevent eggs and pupa from developing into breeding adults, and
Treat, to destroy existing adult small fly populations and provide longer lasting protection
With sales of £2.8 billion and more than 14,000 sales-and-service associates, Ecolab is the global leader in cleaning, sanitizing, food safety and infection prevention products and services. Ecolab delivers comprehensive programs and services to foodservice, food and beverage processing, healthcare, and hospitality markets in more than 160 countries. More news and information is available at www.ecolab.com. The Pest Elimination Division for UK and Ireland is based in Sutton, Surrey.
Food & Beverage: Enhancements to EcoChexx Net
Ecolab announces a number of enhancements to EcoChexx Net, its unique Hygiene Management Software. These new enhancements provide greater flexibility within the system, based on feedback from existing users.
EcoChexx Hygiene Module - Summary of New Features
Task Sign Off: The hygiene “Sign Off” screen now offers more flexibility. Users are able to select multiple tasks regardless of their status (overdue, due today or future) and sign them off as Acceptable, Unacceptable or Not Completed. Re-cleans can also now be created for multiple tasks.
Inspection: The Hygiene Task Manager screen now incorporates an “Inspection” button which allows an inspection to be completed on all plant items that have been cleaned prior to the final sign off. The inspections can be completed by any user who is granted access to the Hygiene Module.
On selecting “Inspection” the following screen appears allowing tasks to be allocated Acceptable, Unacceptable or Not Completed status. These tasks can be selected on a multiple basis to save time and re-cleans can be created direct from the unacceptable or not completed screens.
Tasks that have been given “Acceptable” inspection status will appear in the Hygiene Task Manager as pale blue providing the hygiene teams with a clear visual indication that they have achieved the required standard.
Inspection Reports: The “Cleaning Summary” report has been upgraded to identify which items have been inspected and provide management summaries in percentage values. Tasks that have been inspected are identified by having blue text in the status column and an additional value has been added to the summary graph showing the percentage of tasks inspected versus the total scheduled for cleaning.
A new “Inspection Summary” report has also been created providing more specific details on all inspected items and any re-cleans created.
EcoChexx Monitoring & Control - Summary of New Features
Multiple Selections for Questions: In question based audits we have added a multiple select option for the responses to questions. This will benefit users that have audits with large numbers of questions as they can select a response for the majority and adjust the minority of questions as required.
Enlarged Question Fields: The question field has been enlarged to display the whole question removing the need to scroll and also facilitate the use of tablet PC’s.
Creating Hygiene Tasks from within Audits: In the past it has not been possible to create a task from within an audit that appeared in the Hygiene Module. This has now been updated and Hygiene tasks can be created from any module within the EcoChexx system where it is possible to create a task. To achieve this, simply select the “Hygiene - Global” task type when creating a task and the task will appear in the Hygiene Task Manager.
Multiple Defect Answers: It is now possible to select multiple defect answers for each question when creating an audit. This provides greater flexibility in capturing responses to questions.
For a complete overview of EcoChexx Net, please visit the website at www.ecochexx.com.
Food & Beverage: New product range to sweeten the chocolate industry
At Ecolab we are pleased to introduce products specifically aimed at chocolate mould washing.
Chocolate mould washing is a highly specialist area, it is critical to achieve a clean and dry mould in order to ensure the product is released from the mould without imperfections which can lead to customer dissatisfaction. In addition, the washing process and detergents must not lead to deterioration of the mould or stress cracking, as this can lead to higher cost in mould replacement, or worse, hard plastic contamination of the product.
Ecolab have introduced Aquanta PC, a specialist mould washing detergent and Aquanta RI, a specialist rinse aid. When used in combination with the Aquanta Controller, you can not only be assured of safe and clean moulds, you can also take control of your detergent, water and effluent costs.
Healthcare: Launch of United Sales Team
Combining sales teams aims to provide our healthcare customers with a unified and coherent service.
It has become clear over the last few years that our healthcare customers are in need of significant support in the battle against Healthcare Associated Infections (HCAIs). In order to facilitate this support in the most effective way, the decision was taken to restructure our sales team to provide a single point of contact for the UK and Ireland’s healthcare professionals by combining the sales teams from two divisions. Historically one division has specialised in hospital cleaning the other in hospital disinfection. In the battle against HCAl both need to be managed together.
The new team are working under the stewardship of our newly appointed Sales Manager, Neil Emery. A stalwart of the Institutional Division, the importance of providing the healthcare market with a ‘Powerful Force Against Infection’, meant that only a high achiever like Neil would be suitable for the position.
“Having served Ecolab for many years,” commented Neil, “I am delighted to be given this challenge and opportunity. All acute Trusts are in need of help, both in terms of product and people, and we, as a company, are determined to provide it.”
Divisional Manger, Andy Newsome, added “We have reassessed and rationalised our range, enabling us to provide the single biggest source of infection prevention products in the UK. Our single-minded aim is to reduce HCAIs through effective infection prevention, not only with routine use products but also through special solutions to address specific problems like MRSA, virus risks or C. difficile outbreaks.”
In all four key areas of hygiene - hand, skin, instrument and hard surface - Ecolab are determined to provide practical, innovative solutions both in terms of products, services and training support for healthcare professionals across the UK and Ireland.
Contamination Control: New Centre of Excellence facility opens
Shield Medicare - Ecolab's Centre of Excellence for Contamination Control - is celebrating a new stage in its evolution with the opening of a purpose built manufacturing facility at Baglan Energy Park, near Swansea, South Wales.
In addition to quadrupling the size of the former production facilities, the new site houses state-of-the-art production cleanrooms and laboratories, ensuring quality of product and response to the customer.
The new facility comprises several high specification Grade B, C and D cleanrooms, with Grade A filtration over all open manufacturing processes.
Large volume production enables single-batch supply to major pharmaceutical companies.
The cleanroom design incorporates many new features to minimise contamination risk from people traffic and air flow during the production process. These include electronic interlocking hatches, talk-through panels and the latest intercom systems.
Even the change areas and preparation rooms are high specification and make use of different coloured flooring to identify "clean" and "dirty" areas, along with traditional step-over benches.
Automation of the production processes ensures consistent and timely manufacture, resulting in a superior product. Please contact Customer Services for information or advice regarding your cleanroom application:
+44(0)1252 717616 or info.shieldmedicare@ecolab.co.uk
Contamination Control: Working with customers to achieve GMP
Although life science cleanrooms are required to operate to GMP and maintain specific microbiological and particulate limits according to the grade of cleanroom, there is little advice on how this should be achieved.
Shield Medicare – a division of Ecolab – is able to give customers the benefit of its experience of manufacturing in cleanrooms and can advise on many aspects of contamination control, through confidential consultation, technical support and the supply of helpful articles and documents.
One thing stated very clearly by GMP is that:
"Disinfectants used in Grade A and B areas should be sterile prior to use"
Shield Medicare offers Klercide - the widest available range of disinfectants – which includes sterile alcohols with highest specification (EP) Water for Injection and unique chemical formulations. Trigger spray products are all protected against in-use contamination by the patented SteriShield Delivery System.
GMP also states that:
"The transfer of materials into and out of the unit is one of the greatest potential sources of contamination"
Research has shown that spraying and wiping is the most effective method of removing bioburden during the transfer process, especially for the removal of spores. We offer Klerwipe - a wide range of sterile low particulate dry and impregnated wipes. We also offer Klerpack - a unique range of cleanroom consumables multi-packed in polythene to reduce paper and improve the transfer process.
Shield Medicare regularly gives presentations and can offer a range of helpful technical articles to assist in meeting GMP requirements. Please contact Customer Services for information or advice regarding your cleanroom application:
+44(0)1252 717616 or info.shieldmedicare@ecolab.co.uk