The New Standard

A version of this post originally appeared on Outcomes Rocket’s blog, following an interview with R-Zero’s President and Co-founder, Eli Harris. We are sharing it here with permission from Outcomes Rocket. Pre-pandemic, clean spaces were important. Today, a clean space is not enough. Thanks to the increased attention to public health and safety due to […]

In the mid 1800s, the British obstetrician Sir James Young Simpson argued that infections after surgical procedures were closely related to deficiencies in hospital design, ventilation, and management. Simpson had previously observed the negative effects of overcrowding in hospitals and studied the correlation between poor hospital conditions and mortality rates. He used the term hospitalism […]

If you ever labored through Homer’s The Odyssey in a high school literature class, you may recall the disturbing homecoming of the eponymous hero, Odysseus. What you may not remember is that the final scenes of Homer’s epic poem include one of the older records of disinfection practices in the western literary canon. Here’s what […]

The largest school system in the U.S., the New York City public schools, reopened on Monday, September 13th. To support this reopening, the schools implemented a large number of mitigation measures. On a dedicated webpage titled “Health and Safety in Our Schools,” the district shared 12 different mitigation measures, with ventilation at number seven on […]

With many schools across the U.S. already back in session, the Harris Poll fielded August 20th to 22nd surveyed parents about how they are feeling as their students return to classrooms and campuses. 60% of parents said knowing that some students are returning to school unvaccinated and potentially without masks makes them uncomfortable. 74% of […]

On Thursday, August 26th, R-Zero partnered with the American Association of School Administrators (AASA), also known as The School Superintendents Association, to host a panel discussion on best practices in working toward, “The New Standard for Healthy Classrooms: Fewer Sick Days, Better Performance.” The session brought together public health experts and school leaders to explore […]

According to urban legend, U.S. Surgeon General William Stewart made a bold proclamation in the later 1960s: “It is time to close the book on infectious diseases, and declare the war against pestilence won.” While subsequent research has unearthed no evidence that Stewart actually uttered these words, the statement reflects a pervasive naivety in the […]

On August 3rd, New York City’s mayor, Bill DeBlasio, announced a vaccine mandate for the city’s residents. This mandate requires proof of at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine in order to participate in a variety of activities, including indoor dining, fitness, and performances, for both participants and employees. At the time of the […]

In March 2020, when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided to postpone the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, the announcement marked the first time the Games had been postponed since their debut in 1896. The Games’ schedule had only been altered three other times – during World War I and World War II. At the time, […]

This afternoon, President Biden is expected to announce a new requirement for federal workers to either be vaccinated or submit to strict testing protocols. CNN has called this anticipated announcement and the recent CDC reversal on mask recommendations “emergency actions designed to contain a new surge of Covid-19 that has quickly become the top issue […]

Current headlines featuring words like “delta,” “gamma,” and “lambda” might conjure images of sororities and fraternities, but they are instead reports on the COVID variants that have been appearing worldwide. Viral variants are a natural part of viral evolution, and the proliferation of variants alone should not be cause for alarm. Dr. Inci Yildirim, MD, […]

By Grant Morgan, CEO and Co-Founder In the introduction to their influential 2020 book Healthy Buildings: How Indoor Spaces Drive Performance and Productivity, Joseph G. Allen and John D. Macomber describe the multidisciplinary pursuit of healthier indoor spaces as “the greatest untapped business and health opportunity of our time.” Today, R-Zero is significantly advancing the […]

In a recent interview for the University of Maryland’s School of Public Health, Dr. Donald Milton shared his applied environmental health expertise regarding COVID-19 mitigation strategies like mask wearing. When asked what measures public places can employ to help mitigate COVID-19 spread, he explained, “We need to engineer our spaces to be safe. Installing highly […]

This year’s July 4th holiday weekend marked an inflection point for America’s ongoing emergence from the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Multiple national news outlets noted how the anniversary of the country’s independence has coincided with significant indicators of resuming pre-pandemic behavior. Commenting on July 4th celebrations in the nation’s capital, The Washington Post described the weekend’s festivities […]

By Grant Morgan, CEO and Co-Founder R-Zero is a company with an ambitious vision: to create a world without sick days. Today, while a global pandemic continues to claim lives and devastate economies, that vision seems particularly far fetched. But we see a hopeful future – one even better than what we knew before – and […]

On March 23, 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated their guidance regarding building ventilation. While highlighting the importance of ventilation and air quality in the fight against COVID-19, the CDC acknowledged that there are “multiple mitigation strategies…to reduce the spread of disease and lower the risk of exposure.” In addition to […]

A Conversation with CDC and Education Leaders Regarding Infection Control Strategies for the Post-Covid Era Recently, R-Zero hosted a panel discussion with former CDC official Dr. Paula Fujiwara, and school leaders from across the country – to discuss the challenges and successes in safely returning to in-person learning.  Now, school districts across the country consider […]

While for much of the world, our enhanced focus on preventing the spread of illness indoors is a relatively new one, infection control has always been critical to senior care operations. Long before the pandemic, pathogenic threats like norovirus, VRE and MRSA have been ongoing challenges that required vigilant disinfection protocols across senior care facilities.  […]

And 91% Say Employers are Responsible for Health Experience brings both renewed priorities and new expectations. While it’s clear there will be new priorities and expectations from the employee-employer relationship, there has been much uncertainty from organizations as to what those are.  In April, R-Zero partnered with The Harris Poll to survey office workers across […]

By Ben Boyer, Executive Chairman and Co-Founder, R-Zero Since co-founding Tenaya Capital in 2009, I’ve had the opportunity to invest in startups like Qunar, Eventbrite, and Lyft — companies that have transformed entire sectors and with them, our daily lives. But as I entered my 40s and began to think more about my impact on […]

by Scott Rhymes, The ABD Team When a social norm as common as a handshake may go the way of the Dodo bird, new expectations are bubbling to the surface that will influence how we reduce the spread of communicable diseases into the future. The pandemic has taught society, employers, and employees a lot about […]

Before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, San Francisco was arguably the coworking capital of the U.S. In 2018, the city had more coworking spaces per capita than any other major city in the country. In San Francisco’s ecosystem of tech startups, entrepreneurs and creatives, coworking spaces have in recent years served as a preferred […]

(Updated October 11, 2021) In early March, President Biden signed his $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan. Marking the largest one-time federal investment in education to date, the bill provided an unprecedented $125 billion in aid to K-12 schools and added to the pot of funding still available from previous rounds of relief. As schools navigate […]

By Kevin Samy, Government Affairs Lead at R-Zero In 1962, Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring issued a stern warning against neglecting the immense risks of hazardous chemicals use, especially in pesticides. Her book helped encourage policymakers to take a hard look at the widespread application of DDT, a harmful pesticide, adding fuel to a burgeoning environmental […]

We need a new standard for infection prevention – one that prioritizes human health and ensures the safety of the spaces where we spend our time, and one where organizations of all shapes and sizes have access to the best technologies and protocols available today.

SAN FRANCISCO, December 9, 2020 — R-Zero, a biosafety company dedicated to developing the most effective hospital-grade UV-C disinfection technologies to reduce the spread of infectious disease, today announced its official membership with the International Ultraviolet Association, Inc. (IUVA). IUVA is a leading educational and advocacy organization composed of UV equipment vendors, scientists, engineers, consultants, […]

Discover UV-C disinfection safety essentials and what safeguards your UV-C disinfection system should include.

What it means to be a Double Bottom Line Company, and why that matters to us. We are thrilled to announce that R-Zero has closed $15M in Series A funding led by DBL Partners (Ira Ehrenpreis), with participation from a number of other world-class investors including Bedrock Capital (Geoff Lewis) and HAX / SOSV (Duncan […]

Navigating the crowded UV-C market can appear daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. Here are four key considerations to ensure you’re selecting the best UV-C device for your environment.

Schools face unique challenges to re-opening. Discover the key considerations school leaders are addressing to strengthen infection prevention programs.

For the first time, schools can bring hospital-grade disinfection into their campuses on a daily basis. Learn why UV-C is an ideal disinfection solution for schools.

Dr. Richard Wade, PhD, MPH, R-Zero Chief Scientist shares how schools, businesses, and workplaces can implement long term infection prevention programs.

Discover how schools are using R-Zero Arc to destroy 99.99% of viruses in minutes without harmful impact of chemicals.

How does UV-C disinfection work? Get answers to the most common questions about UV-C.

R0 has long been considered a fundamental metric in the study of infectious disease dynamics. Get an introduction on R0 and how R-Zero is working to help reduce R0 values across communities.

Learn the difference between cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting to help develop the best infection prevention program.

If you are considering purchasing a UV-C disinfection device, it’s critical to understand how effective it is at reducing pathogens. Learn more about what testing results mean to make an informed decision when comparing UV-C devices.

Find out how your organization can employ UV-C to strengthen your disinfection protocols and make your facilities safer.

Our flagship product, Arc, is the first hospital-grade UV-C disinfection system designed for the dynamic environments of modern organizations. Proven to destroy 99.99% of surface and airborne pathogens in a 1,000 sq ft room in just 7 minutes, Arc is the most powerful, human-centric and adaptable UV-C system on the market.

It took a deadly virus we can’t even see to open our eyes. We have a vision, which from this moment in humanity’s history might seem lofty, but that is the point of visions: to be ambitious. While the majority of the world is forced to live day by day, we are taking the long […]