[Homex x Yamada Machine Tool] Innovation in Thai hygiene management with ‘easy cleaning → safe disinfection’ by combining strong alkaline ionized water + hypochlorous acid water!

Yamada Machine Tool is handling ALCOOL and ViruClear The former is a device that produces strong alkaline ionized water with a pH of 12.5 and is mainly used for washing parts in factories.

The latter is a device that produces hypochlorous acid water that powerfully disinfects, killing bacteria and viruses with an effective chlorine concentration of 200 ppm, assuming installation in food processing plants and medical care sites.

Using these two characteristic waters, a verification was conducted at the Yamada Machine Tool Building to promote "improvement of the hygienic environment" and "labor saving of cleaning and decontamination work" of restaurants in Thailand

In collaboration with the building maintenance company Homex, it will create a new phase in Thailand’s food and beverage industry!

HOMEX is a comprehensive building maintenance company located in Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture. In 2013, the company expanded into Thailand and established a local subsidiary “HBS (Homex Business Service)” in Bangkok.

Mr. Kohei Hashiguchi, MD, explains the reason for expanding into Thailand, "A large number of Homex business partners have advanced to Thailand, and we thought that we could be of service to them." Their main businesses in Thailand are office cleaning and dispatching of Thai maids/gardeners. They cover a wide area, including locations such as Bangkok, Amata Nakorn and Amata City. As the head office in Japan carries out cleaning, kitchen hygiene management, pest control, B-ST construction, etc. as a comprehensive building maintenance company, they are also utilizing that know-how in Thailand.

On the other hand, Yamada Machine Tool wants to disseminate the aforementioned ALCOOL and ViruClear not only for industrial applications but also for other industries. “For example, a Thai food manufacturer is interested in the performance of ALCOOL and ViruClear. The pH12.5 electrolyzed water produced by ALCOOL effectively decomposes and cleans protein and fat stains, and since it contains almost no chemicals, it does not require rigorous rinsing and is safe for the human body.

Alternatively, the hypochlorous acid water produced by ViruClear is sterilized water of a quality that can be used for cooking utensils that handle food and foodstuffs and valid for killing a wide range of viruses and bacteria including new corona and norovirus.

Furthermore, it is friendly to the human body and environment. I was wondering if this could be used in the food and beverage industry such as restaurants.” Said Haruhisa Yamada, president of Yamada Machine Tool. "Protein and fat stains cannot be removed sufficiently by rinsing with hot water. Even if they are washed with a neutral detergent, it is difficult to remove them completely. Under such conditions, if the kitchen, utensils, etc. are sterilized using alcohol or hypochlorous acid-based chemicals, its disinfection is only on the surface and bacteria inside the dirty portion remains and proliferates.

Strong alkaline ionized water produced by our device has the surprisingly powerful ability to decompose organic stains such as proteins and fats.” (Yamada) "In addition, hypochlorite water has indeed 80 times the sterilizing ability of sodium hypochlorite (kitchen bleach) of the same chlorine concentration, and it exhibits a universal and powerful sterilization effect on both envelope-type viruses such as new corona that sodium hypochlorite is not so effective on and non-enveloped viruses such as norovirus that alcohol is hardly effective on.” (Yamada)

Mr. Kohei Hashiguchi / MD of HBS (Homex Business Service) (left)
Mr. Haruhisa Yamada / President of Yamada Machine Tool (right)

What the two companies can do to improve hygiene management in the Thai food and beverage industry

The collaboration between HBS and Yamada Machine Tools began in May 2020, mediated by a company which has a business with the both companies. The common goal of Yamada Machine Tools and HBS is to improve the hygiene management of Thai restaurants.

“At restaurants, for example, taking measures after cockroaches come out is too late. In this age of developed SNS, an incident with cockroaches, mice, and food poisoning concerns the survival of the shop. The idea of cleaning up the garbage properly every day and keeping it clean before it gets dirty has not yet penetrated Thailand.” (Hashiguchi)

▲ HBS staff cleaning the kitchen of a restaurant. Japanese quality cleaning technology is outstanding

"The combination of removing protein stains with strong alkaline ionized water and disinfecting with hypochlorous acid water should be effective in the food and drink industry. Until now, we have only been appealing for industrial usage, but by collaborating with HBS, our products can be applied for cleaning and sanitizing restaurants in Thailand.” (Yamada).

ALCOOL's strong alkaline ionized water powerfully dissolves and cleans protein stains and fat stains tha t are hotbeds for bacteria. Then it is further sterilized with ViruClear hypochlorous acid water. In the hygiene management of restaurants that handle foodstuffs, if no detergents or rigorous rinsing is required and the cleaning/disinfecting capability improves, there would be no reason not to use them.

One day in August 2020.
On this day, a cleaning experiment for fat stains using ALCOOLwas conducted at the Yamada Machine Tool Building. For this purpose, we borrowed a grill net from a BBQ restaurant with charred fat stuck on after use for roasting meat and soak it in the strong alkaline ionized water made with ALCOOL. How did it come out?

▲Used grill net from a BBQ restaurant

▲MD Hashiguchi watching over the grill with a serious look

The result, the greasy fat stuck on the grill could be removed by soaking it in ALCOOL (two for 10 minutes and 20 minutes each) and scrubbing it with a brush only. No detergent or abrasive was used.

▲ Just soaking in ALCOOL and scrubbing it, the greasy fat stain had been well removed

At a later date, President Yamada received the evaluation of the BBQ restaurant that cooperated with the experiment.

"The greasy fat stains on the relatively new nets are very well removed."
"I am interested in the use of strong alkaline ionized water and would like to continue studying its effectst."

“If a net is washed with ALCOOL from the state when it is new, the time and effort of washing are reduced, and it is prospected that the fixed sticking of charred fat to the net can be prevented.” (Yamada)

The vision of MD Hashiguchi and President Yamada is to contribute to hygiene management and labor savings of restaurants in Thailand by using ALCOOL, which does not require detergent, and ViruClear, which is a powerful sterilizer. To achieve this, uncompromising improvement will be continued.

Interview cooperation

HOMEX BUSINESS SERVICE (THAILAND) CO., LTD.

■ Profile
Kohei Hashiguchi / Managing Director
Born in 1976
"I would like to help those who are in trouble during the corona disaster."

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