Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

MSU Partners with UV Angel to Install Air-Cleansing Solutions

  • By Matt Jones
  • 03/18/21

Michigan State University has partnered with pathogen control technology vendor UV Angel to install UV Angel Clean Air units around the MSU campus. They have already been added to busy areas like the Olin Health Center and Wonders Hall, and they’re scheduled for installation soon in campus athletic facilities. The goal is to foster cleaner, safer environments for students and faculty as they return to campus during (and after) the coronavirus pandemic.

The technology uses ultraviolet light that can neutralize up to 99.99% of ambient bacteria, viruses, and fungi in the air or on various surfaces. It operates while spaces are occupied to eliminate potential infections at the immediate time and place of the potential contamination, before it gets the opportunity to spread. Originally developed for use in healthcare environments, the solutions can run continuously and independently, 24/7.

“Our main priority is to keep our Spartan family safe,” said Dan Bollman, MSU’s VP in charge of facilities. “From mandatory, on-campus COVID-19 testing to enhanced cleaning and safety measures, we have been doing everything we can to protect our campus community during the pandemic. Installing new air purifying technology is another way we’re investing in improving safety for our students, staff, faculty, and visitors.”

In contrast to large-scale solutions like building-wide HVAC units, the UV Angel solutions were designed to prevent person-to-person contamination within a smaller field of influence. It sucks in air from (potentially poorly ventilated) indoor spaces and treats it with highly concentrated UV light, neutralizing any potential threats at the source.

“Universities by their nature are designed for people to congregate. That creates challenges where diseases are spread person to person,” said UV Angel CEO Tom Byrne. “Just like we see during the cold and flu season, it is critical to understand that people are the major source of contamination and disease transmission. The recent pandemic continues to highlight the need to add engineered, source-level controls at the point where contamination is occurring. Michigan State is among leading universities in the country to install technology on campus that adds an important layer of protection against infection for students, faculty, and visitors on campus.”

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Designing for Every Mind

    Learning environments have the power to shape not just what students know, but who they become. When a school is designed with genuine empathy—for the full range of ways students think, sense, and engage with the world—it becomes more than a building. It becomes a catalyst for growth, confidence, and belonging. That is the animating idea behind neurodiverse design, and it is one that is transforming how more architects and designers are thinking about school design.

  • Surging Demand for Student Housing Fuels Major Campus Investment Opportunities

    University leaders throughout the U.S. are accelerating plans to modernize and expand student housing as enrollment stabilizes and demand for on-campus living rebounds. Recent data from the National Center for Education Statistics indicates that total postsecondary enrollment is projected to grow through the end of the decade, with undergraduate enrollment alone expected to increase by more than 8 percent by 2030.

  • Zurn Elkay Releases 2025 Sustainability Report

    Zurn Elkay Water Solutions recently announced the release of its annual sustainability report, according to a news release. The 2025 report discusses the organization’s efforts to maintain good environmental stewardship and the solutions provided in helping customers meet sustainability goals.

  • Universities Continue to Launch Multimillion-Dollar Campus Transformations

    What makes the current wave of campus development especially noteworthy is its emphasis on multi-use functionality and community integration. Institutions are no longer investing solely in academic or athletic facilities in isolation. Instead, they are creating destinations that blend recreation, health, housing, and event-driven economic activity.