Air/Q ATMOSPHERES™ Offers New Technology for Community Health and Wellness Programs

MILWAUKEE, WI–(Marketwire – March 1, 2011) – From ancient times to the present day, people have relied on natural scents like lavender, verbena and jasmine to help them achieve states of calm, alertness and well-being. Now, with the launch of its Air/Q ATMOSPHERES™ system, Prolitec, Inc. (www.prolitec.com) makes it possible to do this for an entire assisted-living community, enhancing the experience of residents and staff, and making positive impressions on visitors.

ATMOSPHERES™ is a computer-controlled, fully-automated system that works through the HVAC system or from appliances mounted on walls, in or above ceilings or on tabletops to maintain a controlled, light level of a natural aromatherapy scent throughout the common areas. The system is fully supported by Prolitec with onsite periodic service and requires no staff involvement.

Natural scents include blends of chamomile, aromatic lavender and other complementary and proprietary ingredients. Their proven benefits can also be brought to individual resident rooms through the Air/Q™ Whole Room Air Freshener™, a sleek, miniaturized version of Prolitec’s commercial scenting technology that is small enough to rest on a tabletop.

“There is a body of scientific literature illustrating the remarkable ability of natural fragrances to impact mood and cognitive function,” noted Richard Weening, CEO of Prolitec. “Aromatherapy and the use of scent to achieve an outcome has become an important part of holistic health and wellness programs. According to a Duke University study, for example, the scent of lavender relaxed participants every bit as much as a physical massage. These potentially therapeutic benefits make Air/Q ATMOSPHERES™ a natural fit for the assisted-living industry.”

The industrywide launch of Air/Q ATMOSPHERES™ follows 18 months of testing in more than 50 assisted-living facilities, including most of the communities of Aegis Living, a national leader in retirement and assisted living.

Air/Q ATMOSPHERES™ is “green” and fully compliant with the stringent regulatory requirements of OSHA and the state of California, Weening added. “Prolitec’s patented micro-droplet technology creates a uniform scent effect with a bare minimum of product — less than 1 molecule out of every 1 million molecules in the air,” he explained. “In addition to using far less product, this very small amount of scent is unlikely to trigger an allergic reaction in sensitive residents.”

Typically, in fact, residents are exposed to far higher amounts of scented product — up to 100 times greater — from the likes of restroom deodorizers, aerosols and plug-in air fresheners. These relatively inefficient products also tend to be more expensive when used in an assisted-living or retirement setting, Weening added.

Through the Air/Q ATMOSPHERES™ program, Prolitec offers a wide range of broadly appealing aromatherapy fragrances that can be customized for the specific requirements of clients based on the proven benefits of this ancient science. The unique adjustability of the Air/Q system also provides an additional layer of customization. “The result is a transformed atmosphere that improves the overall experience of residents, staff and visitors,” Weening said.

About Prolitec

Prolitec (www.prolitec.com) develops and provides innovative airborne technologies for infection control, odor cancellation, and the use of scent for positive emotional and physiological experiences. The company’s technologies are employed by retailers, hotels, casinos, fitness centers, spas, healthcare facilities, and other institutional and commercial facilities in the U.S. and 46 countries around the world.

Air care is a nearly $7 billion a year industry in the United States. Milwaukee-based Prolitec Inc. has focused on that market and has optimized a state-of-the-art technology in its products that can not only make the air in a space smell better, with its newest released product, aria, it can also make the air cleaner and healthier for people to breathe.

“The company formed after acquiring a technology that is capable of converting liquids into small particles that are 100th the diameter of a human hair,” said Richard Weening, chairman and chief executive officer of Prolitec. “The technology is extremely advanced and useful for a lot of different applications, but right now we are targeting the air quality and sanitation market.”

Prolitec’s aria air sanitizer is designed to infuse an air sanitizer that kills bacteria and viruses in the ambient air of Prolitec spaces, Weening said.

“We’re focused on implementing the aria technology in spaces where the likelihood of disease transmission is high,” he said. “Aria can substantially reduce bacteria levels in the air and is primarily used in hospital settings, senior care and living facilities or clinics.”

According to Weening, Prolitec uses its patented technology to turn a liquid chemical known as glycol into air sanitizing particles, which are then infused into the air in a specific space.

“The sanitizer is infused into the air in a very small quantity of one part per million,” Weening said. “Research indicates that glycol maintained at a certain concentration can substantially reduce airborne bacteria in a space and aria has the technology to measure and maintain that level over time.”

The air sanitizing chemical is also safe for continuous use in human-occupied spaces, Weening said.

Aria was developed by Prolitec’s Aerobiology & Infection Control Division and is approved by the EPA. The device functions around the clock and can automatically respond to airborne germs and bacteria generated by coughs and sneezes, Weening said.

“The spread of germs and disease in a hospital or clinical setting is a huge problem all over the world,” Weening said. “Not because those places aren’t clean, but because people that are sick are coming to them all the time to get well. Hospitals and hospital-like settings already have infection control programs in place. This is meant to be an automated supplement to that program. Aria is always on and can act as a foundation for those existing policies to improve results.”

Prolitec specializes in transforming the air ambience of a space. Prior to the aria air sanitation device, the company’s primary focus was scent, Weening said.

“Our biggest market right now is introducing scents into spaces,” he said. “If a certain space always smells a certain way, Abercrombie and Fitch stores across the country, for example, that’s us. We’re an air care company with a heavy emphasis on technology and using that technology to provide a service to our customers.”

Prolitec does business worldwide for its scent introductory system and hopes to expand the same way with the aria air sanitation device.

Aria air sanitizer can be used in spaces as large as entire hospital wings to smaller spaces like homes, offices and classrooms, Weening said.

In larger systems, aria is installed in air control or HVAC systems throughout the building. The device is installed with a recyclable replacement cartridge full of liquid that Prolitec certified partners can replace on an as-needed basis, Weening said.

“We provide aria as a monthly service with a one time single service fee where our people handle and maintain all the equipment,” he said. “Cartridges are replaced on an as- needed basis, which is determined based on what adjustable sanitation setting the space requires or desires.”

Prolitec has worked extensively in long term care and senior living facilities to implement aroma therapy devices, Weening said. According to Weening, individuals can purchase a Prolitec whole house air freshener system and an aria cartridge for use in the home, office or classroom.

“Our main focus is to implement the technology where infection control and the risk of spreading infectious diseases are high,” Weening said. “However, the technology can and should be used anywhere there is a need for reducing airborne bacteria. We are targeting hospital systems and long-term care facilities because the likelihood of spreading germs and bacteria are high and the most risky for patients and residents in those settings.”

“Because this bird-control system is always on, the birds don’t come back,” said Richard Weening, CEO of Prolitec. “That is a significant breakthrough.”

Branded “Avian Plus,”(TM) the new system was created by Prolitec’s Aerobiology and Infection-Control Unit. It is available in the United States from Mission View, Calif.-based Bird-B-Gone, Inc., a Prolitec distribution partner and leading provider of pest bird deterrents. The new system will be available from Bird-B-Gone’s pest-control clients in approximately 52 metropolitan areas.

“The bird control market worldwide is growing 20% annually and consists of hundreds of products, each with varying degrees of success,” noted Bruce Donoho, owner of Bird-B-Gone, which has manufactured and distributed bird control products worldwide since 1992. “Being the leader in bird control means that we have a responsibility to offer only the most effective products to our wide base of customers. We’re honored to partner with Prolitec in introducing and distributing the Avian Plus System. It offers significant advantages in the bird hazing product category and we’re excited about its potential.”

Avian Plus uses a proprietary formulation of fragrance and flavor ingredients engineered to be pleasant for humans but unpleasant for birds. Prolitec’s patented “always on” micro-droplet delivery systems ensure continuous bird control by maintaining a minute concentration of the fragrance in the rafters and other locations frequented by pest birds.

In the past, owners and managers of high-ceilinged structures like warehouses, big-box stores and airplane hangers have either used cumbersome netting or mist-sprayers and foggers to spray the rafters with a bird repellant. “The birds would scram, but only temporarily,” Weening noted, “and the foggers would leave residues on surfaces.” Prolitec’s delivery systems, by contrast, keep birds out of enclosed spaces for good by maintaining a constant level of bird-repelling scent within targeted areas. “The ‘always-on’ continuous-control approach is a significant improvement over fogging,” he said.

Moreover, Prolitec delivery systems such as the Air/Q 1100 employ patented micro-droplet technology that uses a fraction of the liquid formulation required for more conventional systems. “Prolitec’s micro-droplets are a million times lighter than conventional aerosol droplets and, ounce-for-ounce, have 10,000- times more exposed surface area,” Weening said. “In short, a little bit goes a very long way.”

Avian Plus has an on-board computer that enables users to control the scent-effect intensity and daily start and stop times.

Prolitec offers wall-mounted, HVAC-integrated or freestanding Air/Q systems that disperse the scent in spaces as small as a single room and as large as a whole building. Avian Plus can be used in conjunction with modified units that include accelerators designed to direct the scent formulation up into the rafters. Maintenance of these systems is as simple as a 30-second change of a recyclable cartridge. Avian Plus comes in two scent formulations: linen and fruit.

Beloved as they are in nature, birds carry over 60 diseases transmittable to humans, and their roosts and nests can also host ecto-parasites like bird mites. Commonly labeled as pest birds in the United States, species such as the feral pigeon, the English starling and the house sparrow pose serious problems in airplane hangers, retail stores, warehouses, restaurants and other businesses.

About Prolitec

Prolitec (www.prolitec.com) is a world leader in the development and deployment of innovative air-treatment and air care technologies including odor control, ambient scenting and the use of scent as a medium of communication. Clients include retailers, hotels, casinos and other commercial organizations in the U.S. and in 20 countries around the world. Prolitec’s Aerobiology and Infection Control Unit develops human-safe and green systems for controlling pests and killing airborne and surface bacteria and viruses.

About Bird-B-Gone

Bird-B-Gone Inc. (http://birdbgone.com) is the leading manufacturer of bird deterrents and is dedicated to solving pest bird problems. The business of bird control is constantly changing and is loaded with products and services with varied successes as bird barriers. Because Bird-B-Gone, Inc. is only involved with bird control, it is our business to stay on top of this evolution and provide our customers only the best in products and service.

Source: PR Newswire

SPA-QUALITY SCENTING TECHNOLOGY COMES TO THE HOME—AND DESKTOP

–Prolitec Unveils First Fully Adjustable Air Freshener for Individual Rooms

MILWAUKEE (7/7/09) – The world’s most elegant hotels, resorts, spas and retail shops have long understood the power of scent to improve the customer experience. Now, thanks to the introduction of Prolitec Inc.’s new Air/Q™ Whole Room Air Freshener™, homeowners can use a sleek, miniaturized version of the company’s highly popular commercial scenting technology to erase odors and enhance the ambiance of any room—without the safety and environmental issues associated with most other air freshening methods.

Air/Q™ is a sleek five-inch cube, handsome enough to be on display and small enough to be hidden away. The system can be adjusted for any size room and homeowner preference for scent strength.   Air/Q™ works continuously to erase odors, including pet and common household odors, while also maintaining a consistent level of scent. Homeowners can choose from a dozen of Prolitec’s most popular commercial scents, including Clear Sky, Lemon Verbena, Rose and Peony, and Mojito.

“Air/Q™ is the first and the only fully adjustable room air freshener on the market today,” said Roger Bensinger, Prolitec’s Executive Vice President of Marketing and Business Development. “Scent intensity levels can be set from ‘1’ to ‘50,’ to precisely match room size and user tastes. Air/Q™ can be programmed to start and stop at certain times each day. Most of all, Air/Q™ is the greenest, safest way to kill odor and introduce scent into the air. It is the same technology proven effective in demanding commercial settings, but miniaturized for home use.”

The Air/Q™ is available for purchase at www.airq.com, which also offers accessories and refill cartridges of proprietary scents.

Prolitec’s new Air/Q™ comes at a time when consumers are spending more hours at home and have an even greater interest in the use of scent to improve the home environment. This has created a booming market for household air-care products that is estimated at $8 billion a year, including scented candles. At the same time, however, consumers are increasingly aware of the potentially harmful consequences of open-flame candles and the soot they produce, as well as the VOCs emitted by some other home air fresheners. “Air/Q™ was created to address the deficiencies of low-performance, traditional air fresheners. Some of these have safety issues. None is adjustable to room size and the consumer’s taste, nor do these old-fashioned approaches provide a uniform scent effect,” Bensinger noted.

To that end, Air/Q™  takes advantage of Prolitec’s patented micro-droplet technology, which erases odors and  delivers a uniform scent effect impact with an ultra-low quantity of scent: less than 1 molecule for every million compared with 20,000 per million from conventional aerosols. “This extremely low quantity of scent formulation, free of harmful VOCs, makes us the greenest way to scent a home,” Bensinger said.

The launch of the Air/Q™ Whole Room Air Freshener follows the recent introduction of the Air/Q™ Whole House Air Freshener™ or “WHAF,” which is installed in the home heating and air conditioning system. The WHAF is available through selected heating, ventilation and air conditioning contractors throughout the U.S.

About Prolitec

Prolitec (www.prolitec.com) is a world leader in the development and deployment of innovative air-freshening technologies and solutions for aerobiology, indoor air quality and the use of scent as a medium of communication. Clients include retailers, hotels, casinos and other commercial organizations in the US and around the world. Prolitec also sells scent systems for the home at www.airq.com.

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Press Contacts: At Prolitec, Roger Bensinger, (414) 615-4630,  AirQinfo@prolitec.com; at Parness & Associates Public Relations, Lisa Kreda or Bill Parness, (732) 290-0121, parnespr@optonline.net

CHICAGO (1/26/09) – Amid the slowdown in commercial and residential construction, HVAC-industry professionals are focusing harder than ever on innovative ways to boost revenue. In a major new sales-generating opportunity for the industry, Prolitec, Inc. today unveiled the Air/Q™ Whole House Air Freshener™ (WHAF)—the first fully adjustable, HVAC-integrated home air freshening system.

The new technology, on view through Jan. 29 at the AHR Expo at McCormick Place (booth 1243), comes at a time of rising concern among consumers about the harmful effects of aerosols, plug-in air fresheners, reed diffusers and other low-performance air fresheners, noted Roger Bensinger, Prolitec’s Executive Vice President of Marketing and Business Development. “People today want to add scent to their total home experience, but thanks to the green movement they also are much more aware of what is in the air,” he said. “They are particularly concerned about the ill effects of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted in large doses by some of these old-fashioned products, including scented candles.”

Prolitec created Air/Q WHAF to give homeowners a safe, affordable and highly efficient air-freshening alternative, Bensinger said. This proprietary technology and chemistry, he added, already is in use at many major hotels, resorts and spas. Without flame or heat and without releasing any harmful VOCs, Air/Q WHAF creates a pleasant scent throughout the home. As an option, when used with ARIA ™, Prolitec’s breakthrough air-treatment agent also being introduced at AHR Expo, Air/Q WHAF and automatically sanitizes the air by killing airborne odor-causing bacteria and mold, fungus and microorganisms.

Patented micro-droplet technology enables Air/Q WHAF to deliver a uniform air treatment and scent throughout a home using an ultra-low concentration of liquid, and with no build-up in the duct work, Bensinger explained. “The system puts out droplets that are less than 1 micron in diameter, compared to a typical aerosol droplet of 50 microns,” he said. “These micro-droplets weigh about a million times less than those formed by traditional aerosols. Consequently, Air/Q WHAF can cover massive spaces using a tiny fraction of the liquid required by other air-fresheners, and does so in a much more uniform way.”

HVAC professionals will find Air/Q WHAF simple to install—it attaches to air handlers using a mounting template with four screws—and Prolitec designed the system to make cartridge-replacement easy for homeowners. In addition to direct sales of and installation fees for AIR/Q WHAF, a variety of air-freshening agents are available for sale as a recurring revenue opportunity, especially for spring and fall check-ups. “The ambient scent business has taken off in recent years,” Bensinger said. “Prior to Air/Q WHAF, however, no product could uniformly and efficiently cover the entire home.”

About Prolitec
Prolitec (www.prolitec.com) is a world leader in the development and deployment of innovative air-freshening technologies and solutions for aerobiology, indoor air quality and the use of scent as a medium of communication. Clients include retailers, hotels, casinos and other commercial organizations in the US and around the world.

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Press Contacts: At Prolitec, Roger Bensinger, (414) 615-4630, WHAFinfo@prolitec.com; at Parness & Associates Public Relations, Lisa Kreda or Bill Parness, (732) 290-0121, parnespr@optonline.net.

Read more at Yanko Design or David Sweeney’s web site

Read more in BBC

Read more in the Earth Times.

Read more at Bionic Nose and BBC News

Since the failure of DigiScents, Korean technology experts have predicted that internet-delivered scent will be commonplace by 2015. Tokyo, Japan-based NTT Communications has been forging ahead with its own attempts. In 2006 NTT release the USB-connected Aroma Geur device,  which syncs scent with what’s playing on the radio, via internet-sent instructions from the radio station. More recently, NTT’s working with the internet-based ability to send scents from your phone, as well as a more sophisticated, internet-controlled fragrance dispenser, currently being used in conjunction with NTT’s scent-emitting signage.

Thanks to CNN for their interesting article about scent marketing and the quest to bring fragrance to the internet, which is what inspired this post.