As the world enters another year of a COVID pandemic reality, partly due to the contagious Omicron variant, the fenestration and glazing industries continue to work towards creating a safer workplace—with immune health and physical well-being in mind.

Window and door companies selling to consumers, including Energy Shield Window and Door based in Phoenix, continue to inform customers via its website of the precautions it takes regarding COVID-19.

“To protect everyone from any unnecessary risk of exposure to coronavirus (COVID-19), our team is checked daily for temperature or signs of illness to be sure they are well before they work with customers. Our sales staff are using extra hand washing and sanitizers. Our installers are sure to be sanitized and are equipped with face masks when entering your home,” according to a message on the company website.

Lake Washington Windows and Doors, serving Western Washington, also continues to inform its customers of health and safety precautions.

“We’ve trained our crew to use sanitation best-practices in accordance with WHO and CDC guidelines,” the company states on its website. “Our installers do not come in contact with our customers. Additionally, we’ve provided disinfectant for use in company vehicles, on installed windows, and on all surfaces that they may come in contact with. This preventative action will help to sanitize all surfaces that our installers come in contact with.”

Industry suppliers, including Magid, released a guide as part of its “Safety Matters” series of instructional safety materials; and Dr. Doug Trout, a medical officer at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Office of Construction Safety and Health, spoke on the importance of encouraging masks, improving workplace ventilation. This includes allowing time off for isolating or quarantining during a recent installment of The Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR) and NIOSH COVID-19 series.

“For example, one of the tools listed for work areas which may not have full functioning HVAC systems, are to use portable air cleaners … These types of systems do not bring in outdoor pollution air, but they can be effective at cleaning air within spaces to reduce the concentration of airborne particulates,” Trout explains.

According to a list of ventilation tips from the CPWR, “construction work generates traditional airborne hazards—including solvent vapors, silica dust, welding fumes, diesel fumes and carbon monoxide—that need to be controlled by local exhaust ventilation or increased fresh air supply. Such hazards and controls should be considered when planning for ventilation to control potential coronavirus exposure.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is updating and reviewing on a weekly basis the different masks approved to help protect against COVID-19, including the effective KN95 and the N95s.

“Companies in every industry are working hard to keep employees safe from COVID, focusing on their health and wellbeing, while trying to keep operations running as effectively as possible,” says Beth Sutherland, Magid marketing communications manager. “In Magid’s newest ‘Safety Matters,’ we look at the effectiveness of different face coverings, as well as mask best practices, such as proper fit and removal.”

According to the company, the ‘Safety Matters’ installment cites a 2020 study by the CDC and NIOSH, which concluded N95 respirators are almost twice as effective as commercial three-ply cloth masks in blocking particulates that could contain the virus.

Tara Taffera and Luly Hernandez contributed to this report.