In addition to the thousands of gallons of hand sanitizer being dispensed around Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, the Port of Seattle is turning to a few new high-tech approaches to cleaning the facility and trying to keep travelers safe during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Among the technology, as part of an ongoing FlyHealthy@SEA program, Sea-Tac is deploying six self-driving floor-cleaning machines managed by artificial intelligence software. The cleaners rely on digital terminal maps to find their way and in the process free up cleaning staff to work on areas that require a human touch.
Sea-Tac is also adding electrostatic sprayers to its suite of cleaning equipment, which add an electrical charge to cleaning solution. An escalator handrail cleaning system was also recently installed inside an escalator to clean that high-touch area. It uses UVC LED lighting technology to remove bacteria and viruses, and another is planned for the airport’s South Satellite terminal.
“A clean facility is necessary for a clean bill of health,” Sea-Tac Managing Director Lance Lyttle said in a news release Tuesday. “Enhanced cleaning means we doubled down with more elbow grease, brought in medical grade disinfectants and invested in new cleaning technologies.”
The Washington Post reported Tuesday on the wave of clean-tech automation that is coming because of coronavirus, and that the trend is especially evident at airports, stadiums and public transportation. “From floor scrubbers to disinfecting drones,” robots pose a long-term risk to “low-wage workers who usually do janitorial work,” the Post said.
Sea-Tac says it spends more than 5,700 hours each week cleaning and disinfecting the buses and terminal at the facility. Enhanced cleaning is taking place at security checkpoints, including the disinfection of bins, bowls, conveyers, railings, benches, tables and other surfaces. The airport has pumped out 2,343 gallons of hand sanitizer and 1,444 containers of sanitizer wipes have been used in response to the pandemic. Additionally, 270 touch-free paper towel dispensers have been installed in airport bathrooms.
In restrooms near Gate C14, Sea-Tac is piloting an industry-first LED lighting system to control traffic flow and increase social distancing. The so-called Tooshlights show red over a stall that is occupied and green for a stall that is available for use. The smart restroom solution is intended to eliminate the need for passengers to push or touch stall doors to determine availability.
RELATED: Space Needle spends $1M on UV gates and other tech in ambitious reopening effort
Sea-Tac is also using an Optiqo Qlvr Box to manage the cleaning and maintenance frequencies of restrooms. The digitally timestamped system increases transparency and communicates to travelers the last time a restroom was cleaned.
Later this month, Sea-Tac is trying a new mobile system that removes pathogens from the air. The existing HVAC system already captures 90 percent of COVID-19 sized particles, according to the Port, but a device from CASPR will filter the air and disperse negatively charged ions attracted to positively charged particulates, such as viruses, bacteria and mold, to neutralize and kill them at the molecular level.
Sea-Tac served 51.8 million passengers and 453,549 metric tons of air cargo in 2019. The Port anticipates a 61% drop in passenger volume for this year compared to last due to the pandemic.
