Innovation Partners for Aerobiology & Biomedical Research

Gabriel Scientific, in conjunction with airmid healthgroup, launched The Pillow Check Up 2013 on RTE Radio 1’s The Mooney Show on the 17th of April.

Listeners were invited to send their pillows for analysis at airmid healthgroup’s laboratories to measure the levels of mould, allergens and bacteria present in pillows around Ireland. The results revealed that one third of pillows sampled had evidence of dust mite allergen. All of the pillows were found to harbour bacteria, just under a third of which at high levels, while half contained detectable levels of mould. A variety of mould and bacterial species were identified including Candida, Aspergillus, Rhodoltorula, and Streptococcus.

Dr. Bruce Mitchell, CEO of airmid healthgroup, was delighted to present a talk entitled “Exposure to Indoor Air Contaminants in the Workplace” at the 22nd Annual Occupational Hygiene Society of Ireland conference held in Co. Limerick. In his talk Dr. Mitchell addressed many of the key elements that need to be taken into account to ensure the quality of indoor air in offices.

As we spend approximately 90% of our lives indoors, it has been shown that poor indoor air quality may have a drastic effect on one’s health and wellbeing. This frequently manifests itself through decreased productivity and increased absenteeism due to illness and general disquiet in the workforce. Taken together, these issues can have major financial and operational implications for employers and facilities management contractors.

The only way to prevent this is through correct workplace cleaning and monitoring of the key parameters that have been shown to effect air quality. The Health Friendly Air programme has been developed by airmid healthgroup in order to meet the need for employers to understand the potential issues in the quality of the air that their staff are exposed to, thus enabling preventative actions and remediation where necessary. The Health Friendly Air approach is to monitor the biological, physical, chemical, and gaseous parameters that are present. The findings from measuring these parameters are compared to international standards and best practice limits where applicable. This multifactorial approach allows for the detection of air contaminants and enables the interpretation of these findings for the purpose of a comprehensive report.

Occupational Hygiene Society of Ireland 22nd Annual Conference, 20th and 21st February 201.

Dr Bruce Mitchell CEO of airmid healthgroup was delighted to present a talk entitled “Exposure to Indoor Air Contaminants in the Workplace” at the 22nd Annual Occupational Hygiene Society of Ireland conference held in Co. Limerick. In his talk Dr Mitchell addressed many of the key elements that need to be taken into account in insuring the quality of indoor air in offices.

As we spend approximately 90% of our lives indoors it has been shown that poor indoor air quality may have a drastic effect on one’s health and wellbeing. This frequently manifests itself through decreased productivity and increased absenteeism due to illness and general disquiet in the workforce. Taken together, these issues can have major financial and operational implications for employers and facilities management contractors. The only way to prevent this is through correct workplace cleaning and monitoring of the key parameters which have been shown to effect air quality.

It’s the time of year again for the American Academy of Asthma Allergy and Immunology (AAAAI) Annual Meeting in San Antonio Texas (February 22-26). The meeting will be attended by more than 7,700 allergist/immunologists, related physicians, and industry representatives.

Following on from our presentation at the meeting last year, the airmid research team will again be travelling to the USA to present biomedical research data related to indoor air quality and health. The exciting research which is sure to stimulate some interesting debate is embargoed until after it has been presented. We will however be making some of the details public after the event. Click here for details.

The analysis of the samples again utilized the airmid allergen analysis facility, the only one of its type in the world with ISO 17025 accreditation. As a world leading biomedical research organisation, airmid help clients across a number of sectors improve, add value and differentiate their customer offerings through a focus on biomedical data, health impact claims and air quality.

The neighbourhood bordering the Grand Canal Docks in Dublin where airmid healthgroup's facilities are based has become a hub of start ups, entrepreneurs, tech giants, and innovation, leading to it becoming known as “Silicon Docks”.  Following in the footsteps of Google & Facebook, a myriad of leading international companies and investors are being attracted to the area. 

Figures from Ireland’s Industrial Development Authority, (the “IDA”) show that in 2012, 140 foreign companies either expanded or launched in Ireland.  One of the principal reasons that companies invest in Ireland is access to skilled labour.  In a recent Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) report commissioned by Citibank, Dublin ranked first for “human capital” in their Global City Competitiveness Index. 

Ireland has a rich history of achievements in science and technology and continues to invest in world class research institutes and universities.  CRANN, a nanoscience institute and neighbour to airmid healthgroup on Trinity College’s Enterprise Campus, recently secured a lead role in the Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) Graphene Flagship project. The EU Commission has committed €1 billion to this project, the largest ever research project funded in the history of the European Union.

airmid healthgroup (AHG) textile and biomedical research representatives will be attending Heimtextil in Frankfurt, Germany from 9 to 12 January 2013.

Heimtextil is the biggest international trade fair for home and contract textiles and the global benchmark for quality design textiles of innovative functionality. It is the textile industry's first major marketing and ordering date of the year and showcases the most up to date innovations and consumer trends.

This week members of the airmid team went along to the Big Ideas Showcase organised and sponsored by Enterprise Ireland. “Big Ideas” has become the key event in the Irish technology commercialisation calendar since its successful debut in 2009. The Big Ideas Showcase is the largest gathering of inventors and venture capitalists in the country. The event showcased the latest collection of twenty investment opportunities which are the culmination of years of research by some of Ireland’s finest researchers.

Eleven Technology Transfer Offices also exhibited on the day, illustrating what their Higher Education Institutes in Ireland can offer industry.

As winter draws in and the temperature drops, the quality of air in our homes can deteriorate. Heating systems are started up, open fires are lit, doors and windows are shut to seal out the cold air - all of these actions can contribute to an increase of allergens and irritants in the air of your home. Sealing our homes may be more energy efficient but unless adequate ventilation is also present this can be to the detriment of our health, especially for those with asthma and upper airway disease. Lack of ventilation may also cause increased moisture levels which together with warm room temperatures give an ideal environment for growth of mold & house dust mites. An asthma & allergy friendly™ certified Air Cleaner can work against these factors to reduce airborne allergens and irritants in your home during these winter months.

This article was prepared by Niamh McKeon. Niamh graduated from Trinity College Dublin with a BA (Mod) in Natural Science specializing in Zoology. Niamh manages the testing and certification approval processes in Allergy Standards.

Medical specialists recommend that individuals suffering from asthma and upper airway disease reduce exposure to allergens and irritants in indoor air to the greatest degree possible.

airmid healthgroup are delighted to have been shortlisted for a business award in the category Docklands Innovator of the Year 2012 for their research on indoor aerobiology and indoor air quality that was recently presented at an international medical meeting in the United States.

On Thursday, 29th November the Docklands Business Forum are celebrating the extraordinary achievements of Dockland businesses in the field of research and innovation.

The Docklands Business Awards will be held in the Gibson Hotel with a welcome reception at 6.30pm followed by dinner and the award presentations.

The 2012 Annual Meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology starts today and will run from November 8-13 in Anaheim, California. The meeting will offer an exciting array of educational sessions for physicians and allied health professionals, as well as some fantastic social events.

You can download the full program guide here: http://www.acaai.org/annual_meeting/Documents/ACAAIProgramGuide2012c.pdf

Dr Bruce Mitchell from airmid healthgroup will be presenting data during Session C; Aerobiology on Sunday 11th November at 2:30 pm. The data relates to surface and airborne allergen associated with carpets.