The transparent Civility Mask could become a vital addition to the hospitality industry. We take a closer look at this French-made mask and try to determine whether it should be adopted by businesses looking to restore some normality in these rather confusing times.
At the beginning of May, I wrote an article about what the UK hotel sector needed to do to succeed, and one of the points I raised was how transparent face masks were essential for this under-pressure sector.
The reasoning behind this is that from birth, we are all conditioned to react to facial gestures, and standard non-transparent face masks don’t allow this.
In addition, there is a significant number of hard of hearing people in every country, far more than most people realise. These people rely on watching how words are formed in the mouth and facial gestures when communicating. Given what’s currently available in the market, many of those people risk being isolated.
Although I don’t have a first-hand experience of the Civility Mask, the information provided to me states it is adjustable, light-weight, has airtight filtration, is re-usable, FFP2 certified and of course, see-thru.
On paper, it seems to be the ideal product for just about every type of business, and if it does what it states, could sell millions and help a large number of companies to stay afloat.
The Civility Mask is the brain-child of the French engineer and entrepreneur Pierre Blondon. Initially, he wanted to create something that would protect his young daughter while still seeing her smile.
Seeing his idea’s wider potential, he used his own funds to develop a product which he hoped would provide best-in-class protection and at the same time, allowing normal human interaction via facial gestures.
Once the initial idea was created, he worked alongside an international team of 14 designers from as far afield as Mexico, Russia, Senegal and Mexico and a further 15 French engineers. Together, they set to work producing the mask which is made entirely in France.
When you think of the range of businesses who will be able to utilise the Civility Mask, the list is almost endless. Obviously, the hospitality sector could benefit greatly from a product like this, but in truth, every business can as facial expressions such as a simple smile could be the difference between success and failure.
The Civility Mask uses high-performance NF 1827 EN 14683/ASTM F2100-19 certified filters and Plastic Elastomer seals. The filters are said to be easily-exchangeable with each lasting for up to twelve hours.
It’s also only around half the weight of a smartphone so it should make for comfortable all-day wearing. And to clean the mask, it’s a simple case of using some hand-sanitiser with 70% alcohol.
Should you be ordering a Civility Mask?
In theory, the Civility Mask could be a game-changer. However, I’m hesitant at this time to recommend people go out and place an order as I have had no first-hand experience of the product despite a request to the agency handling the brand who neglected to reply.
With this potentially being a huge asset for the hospitality industry, I felt it was important enough to bring it to the attention of all the businesses in the hospitality sector who follow our work.
I do not know how robust the Civility mask is and whether it would stand up to the rigours of daily use. Although the designers state the product can last for years, as it’s so new to the market, this cannot be verified. However, it is very likely that given this has been clearly stated, it is safe to assume this is accurate.
The Civility Mask is available to pre-order now from IndieGoGo.