CASPER, Wyo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Wyoming Athletic Club (WAC) here has become one of the first full service health and fitness centers in the U.S. to enlist the help of antimicrobial copper alloys to help protect customers from the spread of infectious bacteria.
The Club is using Black Iron Strength’s CuLEAN® line of weight lifting equipment. The line is made with EPA-registered CuVerro®, a copper alloy that continuously kills 99.9% of infectious bacteria it touches.
According to Lou Quint, founder of Health Club Management, Inc. which owns and manages two WAC facilities, infection control is a big concern for customers of health clubs.
“Knowing 80% of germs are spread by touch, we ran tests on our traditional weight equipment using a hand-held microbe measurement tool,” Quint says. “‘Clean’ is any reading below 300. The bacteria readings on our grips at WAC were over 7,000.”
“When we tested Black Iron’s copper weights under the same conditions, the numbers hovered at 179,” Quint continues.
“That was all we needed to see to make the switch to copper!”
Quint points to several key benefits of using the CuLEAN line of products with CuVerro copper alloys.
“First and foremost,” he said, “I see the use of copper as a strong statement about our concern for customer health. With our germ-fighting equipment, I think we have the cleanest health club anywhere in the West.”
Quint believes that, “Caring is not something you say. It is something you do, which means we get peace of mind from doing all we can to prevent infections.”
He also says that using copper in the WAC’s infection control program is paying off in customer satisfaction and loyalty.
“The change to copper is being noticed ... and appreciated,” Quint says. “We can tell because our return (repeat) rates are higher. When customers feel safe, they come back.”
About Wyoming Athletic Club
The focus on fitness has changed dramatically in the last 40 years and the Wyoming Athletic Club has evolved right along with it. WAC has 5,000 members at two Casper locations, one a 65,000 sq. ft. full service center and the other a 9,600 sq. ft. fitness facility. The Clubs deliver premier health, sports and fitness services using state-of-the-art facilities and equipment. The Clubs’ owners are passionate about helping others be active and healthy.
About CuVerro®
CuVerro, with brand headquarters in Louisville, KY, is manufactured by GBC Metals, LLC, doing business as Olin Brass, a wholly owned subsidiary of Global Brass and Copper, Inc. which is a subsidiary of Global Brass and Copper Holdings, Inc., the leading manufacturer and distributor of copper, copper‐alloy and bactericidal copper sheet, strip, plate, foil, rod, ingot and fabricated components in North America and one of the largest in the world. GBC Metals engages in the melting, casting, rolling, drawing, extruding and stamping of specialized copper and copper alloys finished products from scrap, cathode and other refined metals. (OB‐0034‐1510)
