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24/04/2020
KAZE: PBA to deploy first Made-in-Singapore UV disinfecting mobile robot – SUNBURST – to fight Covid-19

As featured on:

  1. The Straits Times

We are proud to announce that PBA Group’s Mobile Robot unit, KAZE Robotics, will roll out the first Made-In-Singapore UV disinfecting mobile bot – Sunburst UV bot – throughout the region to fight COVID-19.We will be deploying at least 200 of the mobile robots, beginning with Northpoint City in Singapore in May, then moving across various sectors including essential services such as healthcare and transport sector, as well as, critical cluster-hit areas, by end of 2020.The Sunburst UV Bot emits powerful UV-light, which has been proven to be able to kill other viruses very similar to the coronavirus, such as those behind MERS and SARS. These autonomous robots will replace manual labour disinfecting, protecting frontline cleaning staff, and relieving the strain on labour resources. Drop us an email to join the fight and follow us on our social media pages for more updates.

Please read the press release below for more information.

Singapore, 23 April 2020 – PBA Group will roll out more than 200 UV-Disinfecting mobile robots in Singapore and the region to combat COVID-19. The first made-in-Singapore autonomous UV mobile robots (AMRs), known as Sunburst, will be deployed progressively from May 2020. This move is part of PBA Group’s effort to help in the battle against the pandemic, which includes a mask donation initiative.

The Sunburst UV Bots will be deployed first at a shopping mall, then moving across various sectors including essential services such as healthcare and transport sector by end of 2020. The robots are built with a lamp module emitting powerful UV-C light, which is clinically proven to eliminate 99.99% of bacteria and viruses. Also, in the pipeline is to produce similar robots to eventually land in households.

PBA, a regional Robotics and Automation leader headquartered in Singapore, has existing operations and capabilities in building autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) which are developed, designed and manufactured in-house in Singapore. The UV Bots is PBA’s response to the pandemic, to help Singapore. They are the first in a suite of mobile robots PBA is building, specifically with the battle against COVID-19 in mind.

“This move is part of our overarching, collective effort to leverage our resources and tech to help Singapore combat the COVID-19 virus,” said Derrick Yap, Chief Executive Officer, PBA Group. PBA is already looking ahead with plans underway to rollout at hospitals. Mr. Yap added that the robots are offered at low-cost, subsidised rates in a bid to help Singapore. “Our mission is to make the technology accessible to companies, especially in these challenging times. We are offering our help, and calling companies and individuals to join us in our shared purpose.”

The UV-Disinfecting AMRs performs disinfecting more effectively, replacing a job which would have been otherwise performed by manual labour, protecting frontline cleaning staff, as well as relieving the strain on labour resources. With airborne transmission a risk (studies have found that COVID-19 virus stays in the air for up to 4 hours and can travel up to 4m) when the droplets of the virus are so fine they become suspended and remain airborne, disinfecting surfaces through methods like manually cleaning and spraying disinfectant solutions will be not be as effective compared to UV-C light disinfecting.

The Sunburst UV Bots fronts a broader effort by PBA to play its part to help Singapore in the fight against COVID-19, which includes supporting frontline staff. The robotics company had rallied behind the scenes to assemble this movement coined collectively within the company as “Go MAD” – a nod towards its Go Make a Difference credo.