Jeremy Starkweather is the Founder, President & Chief Executive Officer of UV-Concepts. UV Concepts is the first and only ecosystem solution designed to improve the manual cleaning and disinfection process for non-critical portable medical equipment. Experience the most powerful platform in healthcare using the UV-C germicidal wavelength of 254nm. Jeremy has over 20 years of global med-tech commercialization experience. Prior to the formation of UV-Concepts, Jeremy began his career and achieved notable success at some of the most reputable medical device companies in the world. He then led the sales and marketing efforts for two venture-backed companies, one of which was acquired as a direct result of his execution. Jeremy excels in upstream product development, with his strongest area of influence in downstream commercialization and the launching of disruptive technologies in healthcare.
Jason Ylizarde is the Founder and Chief Commercial Officer, Jason also has over 20 years of global med-tech commercialization experience. Prior to UV-Concepts, Jason developed his strong foundation during a 12-year span with several Fortune 500 companies, and then over the next six years commanded various market development leadership roles within four venture-backed companies that resulted in three exits. Jason is a true visionary with an unrelenting passion for changing paradigms in healthcare.
FMM: Tell us about UV-Concepts.
We spent years researching and developing the only disinfection platform in the world that digitally connects the users, equipment, hardware, and software without human intervention. We finally started our commercial efforts in late 2019/early 2020 with several leading healthcare institutions, and then COVID-19 happened. We felt it was important to redirect some of our focus to conduct extensive testing on N95 decontamination in collaboration with NIST (https://www.nist.gov/) on the human coronavirus; those results will be published in an upcoming peer-reviewed publication. At the same time, our first customer (UCLA Health) started independently assessing our technology for N95 decontamination and to date have processed over 225,000 N95 masks. They published the use of our technology in one of the most important journals in infection prevention, Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology. This is relevant because it establishes our credibility by a consortium of leaders focused on the health and safety of their people. So why did NIST and UCLA Health choose UV-Concepts? The answer is simple; we have the most powerful, versatile, and advanced UV technology in the market. https://www.uvconcepts.com/
FMM: “Belief Meets Innovation.” Expound on this idea.
Having the right mindset is everything. When you have the right mindset, you build a team and engage with customers that believe in what you believe. This naturally leads to having an unwavering belief that leads to incredible innovation.
FMM: Is the current ecosystem flawed related to the disinfection of non-critical portable medical equipment?
Yes. We formed UV-Concepts over four years ago because of two main reasons:
1.) There is clear published evidence that high-touch medical equipment harbors deadly pathogens at a rate of 30- 50%
2.) the current standard of manual disinfection is inadequate due to many variables as well as the lack of equipment tracking and process management.
“Our purpose-built solution is unlike any other UV-based technology because we targeted a niche that no other company has focused on.”- Jason Ylizarde
FMM: What is the difference between UV light compared to other disinfection techniques?
The main difference between UV-C light and other disinfection techniques is that it’s chemical and residue free, and it works by deactivating a bacteria’s ability to replicate. UV-C light disinfection has been around for many years and its effectiveness is centered around three key principles: intensity, proximity, and line of sight. The method in which companies apply these different principles is what stratifies the market. In terms of the disinfection of PPE, this was adopted as a short-term stop-gap measure amidst the pandemic, not meant to be a long-term solution. The approaches for PPE disinfection vary greatly (in cost and method) with the most common being either ultraviolet light or gas-based. Ultimately, it’s up to each facility to choose what works best for their organization.
FMM: What are HAIS and how can they be prevented?
Roughly 100,000 people die per year of healthcare-associated infections, or HAIs. These are infections that patients can get while receiving medical treatment in a healthcare facility. They are considered preventable because they are typically acquired from a contaminated environment, surface, surgical site, catheter, etc. Combatting HAIs is a constantly evolving process that requires a multi-disciplinary approach, a bundle of interventions, and a long-term “do whatever it takes” mindset.
FMM: Take us through the process of your technology.
Our purpose-built solution is unlike any other UV-based technology because we targeted a niche that no other company has focused on. We developed an automated “no-touch” Ultraviolet Enclosure (UVE™) to optimize the key principles of UV-C light disinfection effectiveness (intensity, proximity, and line of sight) by surrounding items inside of a fully enclosed, highly reflective space. This produces a high UV-C dose in a short time interval (60 seconds) in a controlled environment leading to consistent pathogen inactivation.
The UVE™ requires no setup by the operator. The UVE™ can be programmed to allow for an unlimited number of users and remove all the variability associated with human error; it will operate and perform the exact same way every single time. With the simple swipe of an authorized RFID badge, users unlock the most capable, versatile, and powerful UV-C disinfection technology on the market. This is because we incorporated a robust platform of embedded technologies, safety redundancies, automated protocol management, and 24/7 digital connectivity. This ensures effective, efficient, and safe operation with real-time analytics of the entire process; capabilities that no other technology on the market can offer.
FMM: You are working on bringing UV-Concepts to the entertainment and production area. Tell us more.
Like I mentioned before, we started UV-Concepts over four years ago due to systemic deficiencies regarding the disinfection of high-touch equipment in the healthcare environment. Many companies have formed in response to COVID-19; we’re not one of those companies. That being said, COVID-19 brought a tremendous amount of awareness and interest from sectors outside of our focused market of healthcare. This led to installing a unit at the Denver Broncos training facility where we continue to explore use-cases for professional sports. We are engaging in similar partnerships for first responders and the airline industry. Most notably, we were approached by Activision Blizzard Inc., one of the world’s leading companies in the interactive entertainment space. They adopted our technology bundle in five different offices/studios in the Los Angeles area for use by a multitude of departments for the disinfection of packages in the shipping department, shared office equipment and personal devices, film equipment, high-touch actor gear/props, etc. We’re just scratching the surface on where our technology could add value, and if there are organizations that believe in what We believe, we want to hear from them!
FMM: What are your plans for 2021?
We have incredible initiatives underway inside and outside of the healthcare space that we’re excited to announce later this year; each with the opportunity to change our trajectory as a company. We have expanded our commercial team to keep up with demand, and are laser-focused in expanding our user base of customers that believe in what we believe.
FMM: Please share your social media links.
Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn
@uvconcepts
Facebook
@uvconceptsinc
