At Vernick & Associates, one of the most common questions we’re asked is, “How do I know what cleanroom classification my business requires?”
It’s no wonder this question gets asked often. It’s very important to select the right cleanroom classification, or else you may end up with a cleaner room than necessary, resulting in unneeded construction and operating costs.
So, how do you know what classification your business needs?
What size particle?
First of all, you’ll need to figure out what size of particle you’ll need to filter out, as well as the lowest acceptable particle count. Is it any size particle? Is it a specific size or range of particles? Most of the time, people go for the lowest-level particle count to determine what classification they need.
Many industries automatically have a default classification that serves as the norm. For instance, in the medical device packaging industry, the cleanroom default is ISO 7 (class 10,000). By researching your particular field, you can find your default specification (or a general classification guideline).
How much air?
Something else to factor in is how much air needs to be circulated in order to get the contamination out. Cleanrooms are designed to keep germs and the outside environment out, but remember that controlling particulate contamination is an ongoing process. Because people, equipment, and facilities all create contaminates constantly, those contaminants have to be continuously removed from the space.
This means determining and maintaining the air flow rate and direction, humidity, pressurization, temperature, and specialized filtration. This is how particles will be removed from the cleanroom.
How much contamination?
How much contamination is okay to have? The answer is determined by specifications for the operations being performed. Most companies figure if their staff is suited up more and everyone understands where and what is causing contamination, a less clean/less expensive cleanroom will get the job done.
At Vernick & Associates, we provide Ohio and the surrounding Midwest regions with custom-built cleanroom and controlled environment spaces. To learn more, contact us today or call us at (216) 373-2330.