Bard Health Is in the Air Instructions
- June 7, 2024
- Bard
Table of Contents
Health Is in the Air
Improving indoor air quality for safer schools
Climate Control Solutions
A Breath of Fresh Air
The emergence of COVID-19 has put an increasing emphasis on indoor air quality (IAQ). This is especially important in buildings that are deemed essential, such as schools. In order to facilitate a complete return to in-person learning, the Federal Government has made school funding available to address critical needs. Among these are repairs or upgrades to facilities—especially ventilation systems. Bard Manufacturing, a leader in the educational market, has many options for districts to use the government grants in the most effective way possible while meeting health agency recommendations.
Funds to Address an Urgent Need
Due to several bills passed by Congress, some $200 billion is now earmarked for K-12 districts to deal with COVID-19. The Elementary and Secondary Schools Education Relief (ESSER) bills allocate money for a variety of allowable uses, but a specific mention was made to:
Inspection, testing, maintenance, repair, replacement and upgrading to improve indoor air quality, including:
- Ventilation
- Air conditioning systems
- Filtering
- Purification and other air cleaning
- Controls
However, in order to receive the funds, schools have a limited time to apply for the grants and get projects under contract.
| RELIEF BILL | APPLICATION DEADLINE | CONTRACT DEADLINE |
|---|---|---|
| ESSER I (CARES Act) | April-June 2021 | 9/30/2022 |
| ESSER II | January 2022 | 9/30/2023 |
| ESSER III | March 2022 | 9/30/2023 |
HVAC’s Role in Fighting COVID-19
There’s a reason the ESSER bills cite HVAC systems as a way to respond to the impact of COVID-19. It’s because IAQ is greatly affected by a building’s HVAC system. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has made several statements related to the impact they have, especially when it comes to ventilation.
What the CDC Says:
“Ventilation is one component of maintaining healthy environments and is an important COVID-19 prevention strategy for schools.”
“Good ventilation…can reduce the number of virus particles in the air (and) can reduce the likelihood of spreading disease.”
“Ventilation system upgrades or improvements can increase the delivery of clean air and dilute potential contaminants.”
HVAC upgrades are an approved and effective use of ESSER funds and can have a direct impact on the health, safety and wellness of students and staff for years to come.
Bard Healthy Classroom Strategies
Our Classroom Preferred™ systems have built-in capabilities and design features that address many recommendations for enhanced IAQ. In addition, we offer several factory-installed options to increase IAQ even more.
Ventilation brings outside air in and distributes that fresh air into the space. It also removes stale and contaminated air. Bard’s ventilation options include economizers, energy recovery units, fresh air dampers and commercial room ventilators.
Filtration is a mechanical way to clean the air by passing it through filters that catch and stop unwanted particles. All current Bard products have ECM motors that accommodate MERV 13 filters.
Sterilization eliminates microorganisms. Bard utilizes UVC-LED to sterilize the air.
- UVC-LED Light is a type of ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) that disinfects the air through shortwavelength ultraviolet light. The CDC recommends using UVGI as a supplemental treatment to inactivate the virus that causes COVID-19. Bard’s UVC light system is rated for 7-10 years.
Retrofit Kits are available for schools that simply want to upgrade their current units. The following can be field-installed to existing Bard systems.
- UVC-LED Light
- MERV 13 filter upgrades for existing units with ECM motors.
- ECM upgrade motor kits for older units that allows MERV 13 filter use.
For more information about the range of products and methods we have to combat infectious aerosols, visit bardschools.com
Health is in the air. So make sure your school has the safest IAQ it can. Contact your Bard Manufacturing representative to discuss options for ESSER funds.
Bard Manufacturing Company, Inc.
1914 Randolph Dr., Bryan, OH 43506
419-636-1194
www.bardhvac.com
[email protected]
The AHRI Certified® mark indicates Bard Manufacturing’s participation in the AHRI Certification program. For verification of individual certified products, go to www.ahridirectory.org.
© August 2021 | S3621