Coronavirus: how long does it survive on surfaces?

Since the initial outbreak of the global pandemic, research has continued ceaselessly to develop the ‘weapons’ needed to stop the spread.

In the environments where we live, work and share spaces on a daily basis, it is essential to know how long the CoV-2 virus responsible for the severe acute respiratory syndrome COVID-19 remains active in the environment and on surfaces.

Aiming to answer this question through laboratory research is a team of researchers coordinated by the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the Universities of California and Princeton; the article, currently undergoing review before its official publication, has found that over the duration of the experiment (around 3 hours), the quantity of active virus in the air reduced tenfold, while on hard surfaces such as steel and plastic it showed greater resistance, only becoming completely inactive after 72 hours; cardboard fared better, with the virus becoming inactive after 24 hours, and finally on copper, the virus completely lost all activity after just 4 hours.

Other authoritative sources are reporting the results of this important study, for example, Medical Facts.

This is why it is important to disinfect all surfaces in the workplace where there could be potential direct contact using appropriate and guaranteed methods: remember, infection can occur via the air or hand-nose-mouth-eye contact. Therefore, when our hands come into contact with contaminated surfaces, there is a real risk of infection, particularly if we haven’t correctly followed good personal hygiene protocols.

The strengthening of preventive activities in this case, with appropriate treatment of work environments and workstations, is aimed at further minimising this risk. For this reason, sanitisation is an essential activity and a weapon against the spread of the illness.

Putting your trust in a company with proven experience and with certified tools and technologies is also crucial to minimising the risk of transmission of coronavirus and other pathogens. Contact us for further information.