U.S. EPA Approves Registration of Antimicrobial Copper Alloys

Copper alloys can play key role in killing human pathogens—including superbug MRSA—responsible for hospital- and community-acquired infections

According to Frank Dunlevey, Director of Application Engineering, Brush Wellman Inc., this decision opens up an entirely new market for manufacturers of hospital equipment, touch surfaces and hardware as well as the fabricators who supply them with antimicrobial copper alloys. “As a supplier of high performance copper alloys, including copper nickel tin alloys,we see ourselves playing a key role in supplying our customers with the materials they’ll need to make antimicrobial countertops, tabletops, IV poles, bed rails, hand rails, and other appropriate copper-based equipment.”

The registration, which permits the marketing of antimicrobial copper alloy products with public health claims, was granted to the Copper Development Association Inc. based upon independent laboratory testing under EPA-approved protocols. These test resultsdemonstrated that copper alloys are effective against a number of disease-causing bacteria,among them Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), commonly known as a “superbug” and Escherichia coli O157:H7 (E. coli).

Widely publicized statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate infections acquired in U.S. hospitals affect two million individuals every year and result in nearly 100,000 deaths annually and costing $30 billion. (cont.)

To read the complete “Copper Approved as Antimicrobial” Press Release: Click here