Air Filters Yesterday Air Purifiers Today – The history of the achoo! office building

In researching the history of achoo! Allergy’s headquarters in Chamblee, I discovered an interesting and ironic twist relating to the actual building. During the renovation of our facility we found several clues as to who occupied this space. Though separated by more than two decades, two companies at different ends of the air purification spectrum are joined.

In 1985 Purafil, Inc. sold three properties in Chamblee. One was an office building situated across the street from the second property… a brick structure located at 3411 Pierce Drive, the address of our offices. After learning of this and doing some research on Purafil I decided to give them a call and speak to someone who had worked here back then.

At the 3411 Pierce Drive location Purafil had three points of focus. Engineering and laboratory testing were both performed here, but the majority of the work done was fabrication and assembly of none other than air cleaner housings. During the renovation of this building, we found one of these very same cleaning units connected to the HVAC system.

Purafil succeeded in developing and engineering gas-phase air filtration systems to eliminate corrosive, hazard and even toxic gases. To this end they employ a variety of oxidizing agents that break down harmful chemicals into non-toxic components. One such example these oxidizers is potassium permanganate. This compound is produced by Purafil, some of which is sold to air purifier manufacturers who in turn blend this with activated carbon to produce air filters. The end result of this is a filter technology that can handle some of the most heavily contaminated and polluted environments in the world.

Now based in Doraville, GA, Purafil has been a world leader in gas-phase air filtration media, systems and air quality monitors. With over 70 in-house employees and 250 sales representatives worldwide, Purafil pioneered technology that transforms some of the most volatile and toxic gases into harmless solids. Today you can find Purafil’s technology preserving works of art, making workplaces safer, and keeping some of the most delicate environments free of harmful compounds.

After discovering all of this, I couldn’t help but to smile. Nearly 20 years ago a company that develops and produces some of the same innovations and products used in the air purifiers we sell to our customers moved from the same location we occupy today. While a “circle of life” comment would perhaps be a bit much, it is still interesting how this one building connects two companies with the same goal, cleaner air for all.