An Austrian startup’s do-it-yourself test, using a mouth wash solution that doesn’t release aerosols, reopens the tourism and events industries for business, without compromising on the health of tourists and attendees.
tFRWD, the startup providing the first-ever patented, do-it-yourself mouth wash, COVID-19 PCR testing solution, unveils its hyper-accurate and speedy testing kit to empower the event and tourism industries to reopen for business in a safe and responsible manner. The startup’s test is nearly 100 percent accurate and furnishes a variety of unique elements that streamline the testing process for users at home.
tFRWD’s solution solves the logistical and methodology problems plaguing the current system of testing, dominated by the－however hyper-accurate－invasive and uncomfortable PCR nose and throat swab test. The solution also overcomes the limitations imposed by the existing infrastructure in Europe and the United States. Working with Dr. Steininger of Medical University of Vienna, tFRWD developed its do-it-yourself test kit solution and logistics system to ultimately shorten the long turnaround times of reliable testing; provide faster access to a test; and ensure the highest degree of accuracy. The tFRWD test offers:
- Less invasive testing: Test subjects rinse a salt water solution in the back of their throats rather than receiving a PCR swab test, right in the comfort of their own home, while filming themselves via smartphone to ensure the self-test is executed correctly.
- Synchronized and digitized logistics: Working with 127 existing labs digitally around the world and large courier companies, tFRWD’s system will be able to test up to 80,000 individuals per day.
- Short turnaround time: Testees can receive their test results within a 24-hour period of sending the test to a certified testing lab working with tFRWD. The short turnaround time enables tested individuals to attend events for several days after receiving the negative results, while they still would not be contagious even if they contract the virus right after the test.
- Automated emission of PCR test certificates needed for travel and an event-safety APP, enabling 100% Covid-tested audiences while also resolving the problem of data security and contact tracing of attendees as required by governments.
“We’ve seen the quick and easy existing solutions on the market, whose companies claim they can get results in a matter of hours or minutes,” says tFRWD Co-Founder and CEO Veit-Ander Aichbichler.
“But these are unreliable and unsafe for the tourism and event industries to depend on for reopening to customers. Our solution empowers travel and event-driven businesses, like airlines and music festivals, to safely open to customers by taking an uncompromising stance on both accuracy and turnaround time.”
“Our digitized testing process enables tourism and event stakeholders to control the risk of infection and gives health authorities a new tool to reevaluate imposed restrictions and regulations based on the new risk assessment. That is how businesses can safely resume operations on an economically self-sustainable level” says Hennes Weiss, Founder and CMO of tFRWD.
tFRWD recently partners with the leading aviation-strategy firm, SimpliFlying to distribute tFRWD’s 99-percent accurate solution to its the travel industry for passengers to properly self-test before departing on their travels. The solution will be distributed through SimpliFlying’s SimpliTested initiative, a program designed to rebuild air travel responsibly, and via tFRWD’s other partnerships.
“The travel industry needs a consistent testing standard that is accurate, affordable and easy to self-administer. testFRWD disrupts and drastically improves COVID testing for travel,” says Shashank Nigam, CEO of SimpliFlying.
“Instead of the uncomfortable and error-prone deep swab method, it utilises mouthwash. This instantly makes it more appealing to the average traveller. Then airports and airlines can deploy it wherever the customer wants to take the test. It can be sent to the passenger’s home, pre-flight. It can be bought and dropped off in retail outlets, or it can be done in testing suites at the airport itself. The overall result is a decrease in cost, and an increase in accuracy and peace of mind.”
“Travel can be kickstarted by offering simple testing methods that ensure health & safety, without disrupting the customer journey. We need to ensure that key elements of the passenger experience are preserved and using a mail-in PCR test like that being offered by SimpliTested allows seamless travel.” said Ben Baldanza, an advisor to SimpliTested and the former CEO of Spirit Airlines in the U.S.
