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Amid the scenario brought about by the pandemic of the new coronavirus, companies need to face challenges caused by the paralysis or reduction of activities, and by the low demand for products and services. However, this does not mean that it is time for companies to stop innovating and investing. Now is actually the time to redirect innovation and investment to help fight the pandemic.

Startups can be allies in this struggle. They are directly related to innovation and therefore to technology. An example of a field to be explored in the midst of the scenario we live in is biotechnology, or, more specifically, biosafety technology. Its purpose is to control the risks caused by the use of chemical, physical and biological agents. After all, work performed with microorganisms that may affect the environment in some way requires extreme care.

Focused on the gradual resumption of urban and intercity mobility, the company Marcopolo, one of the largest manufacturers of bus bodies in the world, is investing, for example, in technology to make buses safer against coronavirus.

Through Marcopolo Next, a division of the company focused on innovation, the company launched, in early April, Onboard Biosafety challenges, seeking startups and technologies specialized in biosafety to make public transport safer against viral contamination.

The initiative puts Marcopolo alongside transport operators and seeks ways to help clients move forward with their operations, in addition to protecting society from the Covid-19 pandemic and other biological agents harmful to the health and safety of passengers and drivers.

The selection of projects is conducted by a multidisciplinary technical group of epidemiologists, engineers and specialists from Marcopolo and follows criteria such as suitability for application on buses and the level of maturity of the solution.

With a focus on offering embedded biosafety packages or available in a service format, over 20 solutions presented were chosen and, among these, some are already in the process of concept approval with operators and clients.

See the segments that drive the solutions below:

Sanitation: biosafety, sanitation and sterilization solutions that make the inside of the bus, as well as the luggage compartment, less likely to spread viruses during travel.

Isolation and screening systems: in order to promote safer and more comfortable trips, these systems allow contact to be restricted between passengers and also with the drivers. Solutions that identify passengers with symptoms, temperature measurement, fit into this theme.

Nanotechnology and materials: new ways to facilitate sanitation and sterilization of the internal environment of the bus.

Information/communication systems: ways to guide passengers, drivers, mechanics, caretakers, etc. on good sanitation practices in the vehicle, luggage and other products offered during the trip.

Therefore, even in the midst of the countless challenges brought by the crisis and which need to be faced by companies, it is possible to boost your company and continue to invest. Biotechnology and biosafety technology are big fields of investment at the moment, because they are necessary to keep everyone safe. By continuing to invest, the company continues to grow and also assists in gradually resuming collective mobility with safety for the community.