Acibadem Maslak Children's Hospital in Istanbul, Turkey

The lobby of the children's hospital is optically far away from a sterile atmosphere. The interior is colourful, playful and not only created for children's eyes. The Finnish furniture manufacturer ISKU Interior plays with open and inviting elements in its interior design.

But in terms of functionality, hospital furnishings are also all about hygiene and protection. Behind Isku+ is a concept in which everything is geared towards an antimicrobial treatment of materials: furniture surfaces, textiles, painting, varnishes and laminates are treated with antimicrobial technology. This supports the classic cleaning and disinfection processes in the hospital environment.

Customer	ISKU Interior; Finland
Year	2019
REHAU products	RAUKANTEX edgebands with antibacterial treatment

This is why REHAU's antibacterial laser edges are also used in ISKU+ furniture. Edgebands from the RAUKANTEX health.protect range generate their antibacterial effect through specially coordinated formulations and coatings. These are chemically effective against a wide range of harmful bacteria such as staphylococci or coli bacteria and neutralise up to 99.9 percent of these pathogens.

When using these special edgebands, ISKU Interior also relies on the use of RAUKANTEX pro - the edge for zero-joint technologies. Because only with a perfect functional zero joint is the critical seam between edge and surface permanently closed without joints. The edgeband with its polymer functional layer is seamlessly welded to the panel on suitable equipment.

ISKU Interior has certified its quality, environmental and safety systems to ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001. ISKU also has PEFC certification for its sustainable production.

Interview with Joonas Vikström

Business Manager, Health & New Markets, ISKU

With its world's first antimicrobial collection ISKU+, the Finnish furniture manufacturer is hitting the mark and sends a clear statement for healthcare, technology and design.

Mr. Vikström, what was the impetus for this holistic indoor hygiene management?

ISKU started the R&D around antimicrobial offering already 7 years ago. ISKU+ is the result, which can be seen today concerning all of the standard products. Hygiene is a value itself but impacting absenteeism via hygienic furniture solutions made the go-decision upon development a natural step for ISKU.

What is the core competence in your material mix?

The main benefit of selecting ISKU+ for hygienic furnishing solution is in its permanent nature. The technology is based on silver- and copper-ions together with antimicrobial fabrics where all the technologies are embedded with the material in the manufacturing process. This enables an effective and permanent antimicrobial feature without a need for separate maintenance or renewal of the technologies.

Where do your customers come from? Exclusively from the environment of hospitals and surgeries?

ISKU+ originates from hospital environments where hygiene and infection control measures have always been a top priority. Gradually, the understanding about the relation between contact surfaces and productivity losses has increased the interest in other segments as well. ISKU conducted a research in a school environment showing a reduction of 52% in short-term absenteeism conveying a clear message about the importance of hygiene not just in hospital environments but all public spaces. Essentially, shared spaces and co-working areas should be the top priority.

For your surfaces, you are using edgebands from REHAU. What are the decisive arguments for you here?

We have a long history with REHAU and we have seen that our processes work in harmony with REHAU’s edgebands. This applies to our manufacturing processes but also to people handling these matters in cooperation.

Antibacterial edges really show off its advantages with the joint-free processing of the components. Do you work with laser technology in edgeband processing for ISKU+ exclusively?

Antimicrobial edges complement the antimicrobial contact surfaces. A table top itself is an essential contact surface, but the edge plays an important role as well. Even the surface underneath the table top is exposed to germs while people operate at the workstation. In addition, REHAU’s zero-joint edgebands help to keep the surfaces clean as the germs have no place to hide from the cloth. Though, zero-joint technology is not exclusively used for ISKU+ as it removes the need for adhesives lowering emission rates and prevents moisture from entering the board making it useful for other product lines as well.

Note: ISKU+ product range includes also EPA approved brass products, where antimicrobial copper eliminates microbes including COVID-19. For other technologies, research and testing are ongoing and there have been positive results within the same pathogen family already.