Certain customers are adamant about one specific item that extends beyond simply high quality products. They require and demand certain devices be completely free of any particulates. They cannot have equipment or other devices that have been exposed to such things as hair, paper, foreign materials and even tiny fragments of anything. To ensure their customers receive what they expect and require, an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) must be sure the product and its components are part of a clean room assembly. This is the only form of fabrication that is acceptable
What Exactly Is a Clean Room?
A clean room is a particulate-free enclosed manufacturing environment. The environment is:
- Strictly controlled
- Rigorously monitored
- Certified and classified according to the number and size of the particulates that float in the air of the room (Federal Standard FS 209D, “Federal Standard Clean Room and Workstation Requirements, Controlled Environment”). In this system, Class 1 is the strictest in terms of cleanliness. In this environment, a cubic foot of air contains no more than a single particle of 0.5 micron in diameter or, alternatively, 35 particles of 0.1-micron diameter.
In such clean rooms, high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters operate in the air conditioning systems. They remain clean thanks to the system of laminar airflow. This forces the air particles to move together in one direction and not scatter throughout the room. It moves them in a single direction and out of the room preventing the particles of dust and other contaminants from settling on the surfaces of the clean room.
What Are the Applications of Clean Room Assemblies?
The room may be a laboratory or be home to manufacturing processes or very delicate equipment. Clean room assembly may support those who produce a variety of components or products. Different industries that rely on the services of a clean room include manufacturers of
- Medical device e.g. orthopedic or spinal implant technologies
- Machinery
- Optical products
- High-end electronics e.g. computer hard drives and microchips
These various industries require protocols that prevent contamination or bio-contamination through the various stages of production including preparation, assembly and packaging.
Clean Room Assembly
Those who construct and use clean rooms are aware of the need for extra protective measures against contaminants. Such a room requires the use of emission-free materials as well as clean, corrosion-resistant workplaces. It is very important during clean room assembly, that everything and everyone meet the demands that constitute a clean room and clean products.
