Terumo’s Xenex Lightstrike™ Robot wins at SBR International Business Awards 2022

It proved to be the ideal solution for cleaning and disinfection. 

With the initial onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare institutions had their resources stretched out and tested, showing an urgent need for a quick solution to increase the efficiency of routine hospital work as well as safeguard healthcare workers. Terumo Asia Holdings introduced their revolutionary Xenex Lightstrike™ Germ-Zapping Robot, and in doing so, nabbed them the Infection Control Award at the Singapore Business Review (SBR) International Business Awards 2022. 

The awards programme recognises remarkable performances or cutting-edge development from businesses in and around Singapore, and Terumo exalted themselves from their competitors with the Xenex Lightstrike robot which proved to be the ideal solution to the increasing need for efficient and cost-effective methods of cleaning and disinfection. 

Pre-pandemic clinical trials conducted in leading major hospitals showed that the Xenex Lightstrike robot significantly reduced the colony count of pathogens compared to manual cleaning practices alone. Amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, LightStrike robots proved to be essential in their integrated disinfection methods that provide key and timely support for the local healthcare workers amidst the manpower and resource crunch. 

Major hospitals’ key opinion leaders (KOL) considered Xenex LightStrike when the country faced a surge of COVID-19 cases in 2020 as it was proven through research done by the Texas Biomedical Research Institute in May 2020 that LightStrike is able to deactivate SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2), which causes COVID-19, at a whopping 99.99% reduction in pathogen load in just 2 minutes on hard surfaces. 

Carrying evidence of its efficiency and efficacy, Terumo deployed Lightstrike robots to leading hospitals in Singapore in an effort to minimise infection risks, especially in the red-zone areas where treatment is rendered to patients with COVID-19. The robot was able to assist frontliners to significantly reduce room turnaround imes.

Clinical trials are scheduled to take place at leading general hospitals on the efficacy of the Xenex LightStrike Disinfection Pod (LDP) with Portable Medical Equipment (PME) such as infusion pumps, wheelchairs, patient vital monitors etc, aiming to further enhance infection control practices in the healthcare sector. These clinical trials are essential to set precedence in improving infection control practices in hospitals as PME are generally shared amongst patients and can be a potential mode of pathogen transmission between them. 

Findings from the scheduled trials are set to be presented at the upcoming Asia Pacific Society of Infection Control (APSIC) symposium. 

The emergence of new coronavirus variants from time to time, the threat of antibiotic resistant bacteria, and Singapore’s initiative to move forward amidst the pandemic shows that Xenex LightStrike Germ-Zapping Robots are a relevant and highly effective solution not only for the healthcare sector but other industries such as the aviation, and hotel and tourism sectors. Some examples of applications in other industries include the disinfection of hotel rooms, aircraft cabins, transit lounges, and common areas used for recreational activities whose surfaces are inevitably highly exposed to touch from the public, facilitating the transmission of diseases.

Watch the interview below to know more about their winning project: