Tevero, in collaboration with BSGSS, donates 1200 masks with Swiss antiviral textile technology HeiQ Viroblock to the Mumbai Police & the BMC

Mumbai: Our frontliners have been working day in and day out, be it the doctors and nurses at the hospitals, policemen or government officials and shopkeepers. To express their gratitude, Advocate Naresh Dahibavkar, Brihanmumbai Sarvajanik Ganeshostav Samanvya Samiti President and Kruti Adani, a representative of Tevero handed over one of India’s initial batches of masks made using swiss antiviral textile technology – HeiQ Viroblock, to the Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh and the Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar for distribution among the policemen & BMC workers working at the front lines.

Tevero is among the first textile brands to launch a mask in India using a textile technology proven against the coronavirus species. This textile technology developed by HeiQ, has been proven in an independent laboratory to be 99.99% effective against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid 19. Fabrics treated with this technology have been previously tested according to ISO-18184 with different enveloped viruses.

HeiQ Viroblock textile technology is 100% safe and non-allergenic. It is made using only INCI approved cosmetic ingredients. HeiQ Viroblock application on respirator masks has been approved by the US FDA under emergency use authorization.

Carlo Centonze, CEO, HeiQ Group, Switzerland in a statement said, “HeiQ Viroblock is a special combination of our advanced silver and vesicle technology that has been proven effective against the human coronavirus 229E & SARS-CoV-2, causing Covid-19, with 99.99% reduction of virus in 30 minutes. It is a safe, hypoallergenic and patent pending technology,” he added.

Tevero’s masks are composed of two layers of soft knitted cotton for excellent comfort and breathability. They have applied antiviral treatment on both layers and the ear loops, increasing protection for the wearer. Sandwiched between the two fabric layers is a filter composed of meltblown fabric that offers more than 98.5% bacterial filtration efficiency (> 3μm). These masks are the need of the hour.

“I feel really blessed to be a part of this initiative. The situation in Mumbai has been grim and the Mumbai Police & the BMC workers have been putting their lives at risk in order to maintain decorum. They need this kind of protection. It feels great to see young brands stepping up and helping the society”, said Advocate Naresh Dahibavkar.

”The team at HeiQ is proud to collaborate with brand partner Tevero on this project which supports the people who need the most effective masks. Over the past few months, where the pandemic has re-shaped how we approach innovation, Tevero has been able to offer the best possible technologically driven products to help with the goal of reducing the risk of transmission in society at large. HeiQ is very happy to be part of this initiative that aims to provide best support to those in need and help consumers feel more comfortable as they move back into public settings’ says Hoi Kwan Lam, HeiQ Group CMO

Apart from masks, Tevero will be launching gloves and fashion fabrics with the same technology in the near future because it is important that ordinary people have access to an added layer of protection against microbes. The masks are available at leading pharmacies, retailers and online.

“We have worked with the objective of making one of the safest fashion masks out there. Our research among 21 textile technology companies tells us that HeiQ Viroblock NPJ03 demonstrates one of the highest log reductions of viral activity on their treated fabric in independent ISO tests performed on different viruses. This encouraged us to partner with HeiQ. Further, to make our product extra safe, we have used 10% application by weight of garment of this antiviral chemical on our masks instead of 5%. This doubles the chemical use with the aim to make the product more effective and long lasting. In fact this high dosage is recommended by HeiQ for maximum performance in critical applications.” says Kruti Adnani, representing the brand.