Symposium 1997: Abstracts

A consortium of six research organisations from throughout the European Union was formed in January 1997 to develop requirements and to improve test methods for the evaluation and classification of barrier materials used to protect people and goods against infection by microorganisms. BTTG is the UK partner for the BIOBAR project. Around the consortium another group was formed consisting of industrial companies and of end users, giving input from their material's knowledge and practical expertise.

The goal of the BIOBAR project is to develop and to validate test methods and classification systems for the assessment of the barrier properties of materials against biological hazards, encountered in both occupational safety and in hospital situations. This classification system, in conjunction with a risk analysis, will offer a tool to decision makers in hospitals and in the field of occupational health and safety to base their product specifications on.

The range of biological hazards can be very broad since they occur as a variety of fungi, bacteria and viruses. These microorganisms can occur in different forms such as dispersed in liquids or as aerosols of solid or liquid particles, each representing different grades of risk. Therefore four research areas have been defined:- * resistance to penetration during wet contact with microorganisms * resistance to penetration during dry contact with microorganisms * resistance to penetration of wet airbourne microorganisms * resistance to penetration of dry airbourne microorganisms.

The barrier materials themselves also occur in a variety of forms: fabrics, nonwoven textiles, plastic sheets, coated materials etc. Most of these materials have a different history behind them and are usually tested in different ways. As all these test methods originate from different sectors of activity, were developed in different countries and in a separate way for different types of materials, no uniform European or international test methods exist. Hence it is important and beneficial for all concerned parties (industry, consumers, health and environment authorities) as well as for the European Union policy and for European standardisation to have uniform validated test methods available to assess barrier properties against biological hazards. These test methods will be used in European Standards as a support for the implementation of new approach Directives, such as those on Personal Protective Equipment (89/686 and 89/656) and on Medical Devices (93/42).

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