AirMaster carpet that improves indoor air quality

21 Jun '10

3 min read

A next-generation new carpet has been launched that cleans indoor air, one of the most significant health risks of the modern world.

The new carpet from DESSO, the international carpet manufacturer, will be particularly welcomed by the world's estimated 300 million asthma sufferers, who are most at risk from poor indoor air quality.

The most important risk factors for developing asthma are a combination of genetic predisposition and environmental exposure to inhaled substances and particles that may provoke allergic reactions or irritate the airways.

The World Health Organisation estimates that, in 2005 alone, some 250,000 people died from asthma worldwide. It remains the most common chronic disease in children, and its incidence is increasing.

Independent Tests

The new carpet from DESSO, AirMaster, is primarily aimed at offices, hospitals, schools and other public buildings, and will provide important health benefits that other flooring solutions simply cannot match.

DESSO is a leading manufacturer of high quality carpet tiles and broadloom carpets and has been in operation for almost 80 years. It has factories in The Netherlands and Belgium and exports worldwide.

The new carpet significantly reduces the amount of dust and particulate matter floating in the air. Independent tests have confirmed that AirMaster is eight times more effective in capturing and retaining fine dust than hard flooring – and four times more effective than standard carpeting.

The World Health Organisation has warned that it can be particularly hazardous to inhale particulate matter. Miniscule dust particles settle in the lungs, and the smallest particles can end up in the bloodstream – with potentially serious consequences.

Improving Air Quality

The significance of this is that most people spend much of the day indoors. It is estimated that a person with a full-time office job spends an average of 1,800 hours every year in their office. Among others, the German asthma foundation (DAAB) has for some time advised that the harmful effects of particulate matter can be greatly reduced if carpeting is chosen over hard flooring options.

AirMaster works by reducing the incidence of potentially harmful allergy-producing particles by safely trapping and immobilising them, guarantees a significant improvement in indoor air quality, and therefore reduces the risk of health-related problems.

The carpet is based on patented technology and is specially designed to trap a higher percentage of dust particles than conventional carpet – and significantly more than hard flooring.

Independent tests also found that AirMaster released 80% of trapped dust during vacuum cleaning, a 16% improvement compared to standard carpet, and therefore better able to restore its dust-trapping capability.

This makes DESSO the world's only manufacturer to offer a product certifiedwith a Gold logo from GUI, the independent German test institute.

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