The Defence and Security Accelerator has just launched a challange around the rapid sanitising of ambulances that have carried suspected COVID-19 patients. The challenge is aiming to test and demonstrate new technologies capable of cleaning the inside of ambulances in under 45 minutes (the current benchmark).
DASA have £500k to fund multiple projects, but timelines are naturally tight. Applications are required by midday on 1st April. We’re aiming to have funding decisions made within a week and contracting done within a further day, allowing projects to start around 10 to 13th April. The ambition would be to undertake initial test of efficacy at Porton Down (in Wiltshire) on the 17 April, with subsequent demonstration of the most effective solutions on a real ambulance on 23 April.
The timelines mean we’re naturally focused on relatively mature concepts, but DASA are still interested in hearing of other ideas that may take longer to develop, or innovations that may have relevance to COVID-19, but are not directly focused on ambulance decontamination.
