The LBA group has developed near Lyon the first urban distributor of hydroalcoholic gel, tested since Monday in Lyon and Villeurbanne. - LBA Group

  • Since Monday, hydroalcoholic gel terminals have been installed in public spaces in Lyon and Villeurbanne.
  • This innovative distributor was designed near Lyon from the start of the crisis by a family business.
  • For a few days, its order books have been filling up, with many communities, public places or companies wishing to acquire the contactless disinfectant terminal.

It only takes a few seconds for the terminal to locate the hands and deliver a dose of hydroalcoholic gel, with no contact necessary with the machine. Since Monday, Miss Clean, an urban distributor of hydroalcoholic gel intended for the public, has started to flower in several places and in several very busy streets of Lyon and Villeurbanne as part of an experiment led by the metropolis.

This kiosk was imagined and designed in a few weeks by La Barrière Automatique (LBA) located in Limonest, near Lyon. This family business of 130 employees rebounded from the start of the health crisis and embarked on a new activity to resist the drop in its usual orders. “Our core business is to protect people. We especially create barriers, turnstiles. Very early on, when the crisis appeared, it seemed obvious to us that we also needed to protect in terms of health, ”underlines Hélène Lorenzi-Hardouin, deputy general manager at LBA.

Our articles on the coronavirus

A patented system

Employees of the company then got involved in the manufacture of this innovative terminal, whose model, unique in its kind according to its designers, was patented. Miss Clean has several advantages which convinced the metropolis of Lyon to be the first to embark on the experiment. The distributor, which can be powered by solar, electric or battery, can be installed outside and inside in just fifteen minutes, without major work on the public road.

Each terminal can supply between 10,000 and 15,000 doses before needing to be recharged and benefits from an anti-vandalism and anti-abuse system. "This system was designed to prevent passers-by from trying to fill bottles with hydroalcoholic gel," adds the assistant director. The infrared sensors installed on the machine do not trigger a dose of disinfectant until the hands are detected.

Soon everywhere in France?

For the moment, around twenty distributors have been installed this week in Lyon and Villeurbanne for an experiment lasting three months. But other sites in the agglomeration could quickly be equipped with terminals, several municipalities having already expressed their wish to benefit from them. "We have around 700 orders and pre-orders in France and abroad," adds Grégoire Harhoura, president of the company, founded by his father. Local authorities, airports but also private companies from the four corners of the country but also from Madrid, Moscow or Mexico want to install distributors to protect the public, their customers or their employees.

Beyond the current crisis, the machine, sold between 3,000 and 5,000 euros depending on the options and which should be offered on lease, seems to have long days ahead of it. “Before, there were fountains in the streets for drinking and washing hands. There aren't many left. Sanitizing your hands on the street may become a new hygiene gesture, ”adds the manager.

If this were not the case, the company has already planned another use for its distributor, designed in a reversible manner. It can be transformed into an energy terminal, to be used on the markets for example to supply trucks or traders' stands.

Lyon

Deconfinement in Lyon: The town hall favorable to the opening of summer terraces from June 2 until November

Society

Deconfinement in Lyon: What avenues to revive businesses on the peninsula?

  • Lyon
  • Covid 19
  • Hygiene
  • Coronavirus
  • Start-up
  • Deconfinement
  • Society