Disinfection co. moving HQ from San Fran to SLC

A company specializing in using ultraviolet light to disinfect large areas has tabbed the Salt Lake City area for its corporate headquarters.

Founded last year in San Francisco, R-Zero expects to double its current headcount to 100 by the end of the year at 345 W. Bearcat Drive. The company designed, manufactured and shipped its first product five months after being launched last April and booked more than $5 million in sales by the end of 2020.

“Utah’s current growth makes it an ideal environment for catalyzing entrepreneurial companies such as ours,” said Ben Boyer, co-founder and executive chairman. “We look forward to leveraging the exceptional talent in Utah to accelerate our growth.”

That first product is called Arc and is a whole-room ultraviolet-light disinfection device that the company says can destroy surface and airborne pathogens like bacteria, fungi, mold and viruses, including coronavirus. It can disinfect a 1,000-square-foot room in seven minutes.

The company says Arc offers higher power and efficacy than $100,000 systems used in hospitals, but for a fraction of the cost. It is available through a monthly subscription lease.

Arc uses a spectrum of ultraviolet light that the company says is safer than chemicals for use around food surfaces, electronics, furniture and more. It destroys or inactivates bacteria and viruses by disrupting the molecular bonds of their DNA and RNA, preventing the viruses from reproducing or causing illness.

The product is designed to be operationally and financially accessible to organizations of all shapes and sizes. The company’s website indicates that Arc is up to 50 percent less expensive than electrostatic spraying and 60 percent less than manual disinfection.

Among the markets for Arc are healthcare, education, corporate offices, manufacturing, senior care, hospitality, and professional sports team facilities and arenas. Company officials have said that education customers are seeing zero COVID transmission after using Arc. They also envision that a post-pandemic world still will emphasize infection prevention, with its technologies being a regular part of a “new normal.”

In November, the company announced it had closed on a $15 million Series A funding led by DBL Partners, with participation from Bedrock Capital and HAX/SOSV, among others.

“R-Zero is a nimble market entrant that’s a great addition to our life sciences industry cluster,” said Theresa A. Foxley, president and CEO of the Economic Development Corporation of Utah. “We look forward to helping them continue their growth.”