Violet, the germ-zapping robot, emits a UVC light to damage the DNA of microbes and germs so they cannot replicate.[/caption] Cypress Fairbanks Medical Center Hospital is the first community hospital in the Greater Houston area to take advantage of new cleaning technology to disinfect surfaces, operating rooms and patient areas. This technology has previously only been used within the city at the Texas Medical Center, hospital officials said. The germ-zapping robot, named Violet, emits a UVC light to damage the DNA of microbes and germs so they cannot replicate. Each robot costs roughly $100,000, said Melinda Hart, a spokeswomen with Xenex Disinfection Services, the company the produces the technology. On earth, the ozone layer typically filters out UVC lights, so the germs and microbes being zapped have never been exposed to that kind of light, Cy-Fair Hospital Chief Operating Officer Naman Mahajan said. The system provides an alternative to cleaning products, which are commonly used within hospitals. Violet leaves no chemical residue or toxic fumes, he said. Cy-Fair Hospital currently uses their robot in spaces where mothers and newborns stay, operating areas and new patient rooms, Muhajan said. This robot is used on top of the other cleaning processes already in place, he said. “Our employees, physicians and neighbors use the hospital,” Mahajan said. “We wanted to provide this additional service for peace of mind, so you know before you use our space that it is one hundred percent sterile.” Right now, the hospital only has one of these robots, but officials said they would like to acquire more going forward. “We have been strategic with how we use it now, but we fully expect to expand the use of the system,” Mahajan said. Nationwide, this technology is used in over 300 health care facilities, Hart said.