From manufacturing personal protective equipment to donating RVs to medical facilities and beyond, the efforts product suppliers and OEMs have made to mitigate the impact COVID-19 has had on essential workers and the communities they serve have been unprecedented. Beginning today, Winnebago Industries has an additional offering to combat the spread of the coronavirus and other pathogens in the company’s Specialty Vehicle Division.
Winnebago and Polser USA have reached an exclusive 2-year partnership agreement to provide Polser’s permanent antimicrobial (AMB) coating on the interior walls of Winnebago Type A specialty vehicles. The coating will come standard on all newly built units in which the fiberglass option is selected from customers/outfitters. The exclusivity of the agreement means Winnebago’s specialty vehicles will be the only Type A commercial vehicles to feature Polser’s AMB technology.
“Securing an exclusive agreement with Polser USA for their AMB technology provides our customers with an additional layer of antimicrobial protection and further demonstrates our commitment to innovation,” said Robert Kim, Director of Winnebago Industries Specialty Vehicle Division.
Polser’s patented AMB material coats fiberglass-reinforced polyester surfaces to mechanically kill microorganisms like bacteria/viruses and reduce discoloration, odors and polymer breakdowns caused by microbes. The material acts like a microscopic bed of nails made from carbon nano-needles that pierce cell membranes and eliminate mutation, adaptation, or resistance to chemical solutions. Polser AMB has a broad pathogen killing spectrum, including certain strains of Salmonella, Staphylococcus, streptococcus, influenza and more.
“Polser USA‘s technology is used to eliminate 99.9 percent of surface microorganisms in a multitude of laboratories, ICUs, medical clinics, and even oncology departments where patients have compromised immune systems,” said Polser USA President Greg Glanders. “As more communities and companies offer mobile medical services and outreach, it only makes sense that these units need to be just as safe and clean as their building counterparts, especially as the global pandemic steers our lifestyles in new directions. We are excited to provide Winnebago and its customers with an extra layer of protection.”
Winnebago began researching new applications that would be relevant for its commercial products in the wake of COVID-19. The company came across Polser’s technology this past spring and started a conversation about including Polser’s AMB coating in Winnebago units. Currently, Winnebago is offering the AMB coating solely in Type A specialty vehicles, but the RV manufacturer may look for ways to incorporate the technology in additional units in the future, according to Winnebago Director of Sales Jennifer Butters.
“Winnebago Specialty Vehicles Division has made it a mission of ours to be thought leaders in the commercial vehicle space,” Butters said. “It’s not just antimicrobial coatings on our fiberglass, it’s introducing the first all-electric vehicle about a year and a half ago now, introducing full-lithium generator alternatives, introducing solar power. So we’re forward-looking to introduce a lot of these technologies into a space that hasn’t previously seen them, and just looking to be thought leaders in the space and provide real solutions that are relevant for the world that we’re living in today.”
