FINNISH ENERGY GIANT FORTUM is rolling out the release of the new 'Fortum lever' in supermarkets. The product is designed to enable customers to open doors using their arms, in the hopes that the risk of COVID-19 transmission will be reduced.
The lever, pictured above, works by allowing the user to place their forearm into the level and pull the doors of supermarket fridges and freezers open without using their hands.
The devices will be trialed at select Alepa supermarkets in Helsinki, with the possibility of being rolled out much more widely in the coming weeks and months. Given that a major source of coronavirus infection is surfaces that are touched by a lot of people's hands daily, such as door handles, it is believed that the levers may help reduce the risk of transmission.
Fortum Brand Manager Jussi Mälkiä told M&M that "The most important goal is to reduce disease infections and make people's business safer. Together with our partner, we found a simple solution that makes it possible to reduce the risk of infection from the surfaces of public spaces".
The levers are made from recycled plastic products, such as shampoo bottles and butter boxes.
Adam Oliver Smith - HT
Image Credit: Lehtikuva
