Blog Tag: clean rooms

Pure Air Systems has been making commercial grade, fan powered HEPA based air filtration systems since 1985 and has seven different model and size configurations to fit any commercial, medical, industrial or residential application for reduction and/or removal of sub-micron airborne particulate. Recently, GOTO RX, a company based in Ontario, Canada that specializes in pharmacy clean rooms and other products for the pharmacy industry, recently purchased a 2000HS HEPA filtration system from Pure Air Systems to tests it’s effectiveness using a smoke test by the College of Pharmacists, Air Quality test protocol. The unit was mounted in the ceiling of two clean rooms with short duct runs to a number of inlet points to capture the smoke that was generated by the testing equipment.

William Fretwell, President of GOTO RX provided this description of the smoke test and the results. The 2000HS was tested at a flow rate of 43% of maximum ( 2000HS can move up to 2,000 CFM ) with a room  air change rate of 45 air changes per hour which is above the 30 changes per hour normally required for this type of clean room. So there was lots of spare capacity. During the smoke test where a special chemical is used to generate smoke that is extremely fine with much of it invisible to the naked eye, the particle counter found no smoke passing through the Pure Air Systems HEPA unit. The 2000HS created a clean room environment in both rooms with a Clean Room rating of Class 6, which is 10 times cleaner than the required standards. William Fretwell commented that, ” most hospitals don’t have anything up to this standard”.

As a result of the successful test results, GOTO RX is planning on publishing an article for Pharmacy Practice Magazine with the title, “The New Clean”. It is important to note that PAS has been using their HEPA based filtration systems for over 35 years in a wide variety of clean room type applications with superior results. For more information on the complete line of HEPA and Carbon based filtration systems please go to our website at: https://www.pureairsystems.com   or call us on our toll-free number at: 800-869-8025.

The problem with any new product development that requires electrical wiring is the design and construction of the wiring harness. The part of the product that carries electricity from the power source to the various working components and allows for product execution by the customer or user of the device. While digital controls, chips and control boards all have their parts to play in the operation of the product electrical wire with connectors and connector boards are still an essential part of the product.

One of the challenges with designing any piece of equipment is the dual challenges of keeping the design simple for assembly as well as for maintenance. This is easier said than done as one often looks only at the fabrication process and forgets the customers have to disassemble the unit for maintenance and repair.  Wiring is an issue as you need to make sure you use push on connectors rather than soldered or snap in connections should the customer have to move or remove a piece of the system for repair.

Pure Air Systems has been manufacturing fan powered, commercial grade, certified HEPA and Carbon based air filtration systems since 1985. The design of the systems has changed over the years and while more digital components are now used, basic electrical wiring is still part of the overall operational design. The use of the variable speed drive ECM motors required more digital speed controllers and boards than before. However, the need for small 24 volt transformers also  required wiring from the transformers to the boards and to the inlet power cord.  Again, design of the harness was crucial to the overall assembly and operation of the unit.

It never ceases to amaze me how something as small as a screw or connector or the correct length of a piece of wire can totally alter the design of a component. If a capture device can not be used because of access to it with a tool during assembly then the capture device ( screw ) will have to be replaced with something else. And, that something else needs to have the same strength to secure the component as the previous screw. Small things make a big difference.

In re-designing the HPS portable unit for the new APPAIS Class II Medical Device, the wiring harness had to be significantly modified to allow for the rotation of the EBM blower/motor 180 degrees and a shift of one inch to the right. This change made the current harness too long and difficult to work with when the blower/motor was installed in its proper position.  This change to the wiring harness was small compared to the major re-design of the housing. That discussion is for another blog.

For more information on the complete line of HEPA and Carbon based air filtration systems from Pure Air Systems, please go to our website at: http://.pureairsystems.com. You can also follow them on Facebook or Twitter and always call them on their toll free number at:  800-869-8025.

We all enjoy the newest and coolest high tech and digital products now coming into the market. Almost everyday a new type of digital hand held device is announced that has star wars capabilities. There are also new advancements being made in almost every aspect of health care and health care products.

All of these digital devices utilize microchips and special optical glass. The manufacturing environment where microchips and optical glass are produced have to be sterile areas. These products are made in what are commonly called clean rooms. These rooms have high rates of air exchange (usually 70 to 120 changes per hour) and all the air coming into the rooms are HEPA filtered.

The HEPA filters used is clean rooms are of varying efficiencies. Some are rated at 99.97% at o.3 microns. Others are 99.99% at 0.3 and many are 99.99995 at 0.12 microns. The ULPA or SULPA filters are designed to have these high initial ratings to minimize the dust and particles in the clean room.

When any particle of dust or debris falls onto a microchip during the manufacturing process the individual layers of the chip can become isolated from the layer above or below and in essence kill the chip. The fewer dust particles in the clean room the higher the production rate. The higher production rate means less waste and thus less cost per chip produced.

The same is true with optical glass. This type of glass is used in a wide variety of products and has to be manufactured in a clean room environment. Again, all the air in the room is HEPA filtered to make sure all the glass surfaces are washed with HEPA filtered air to ensure no dust, dirt or particulates of any kind are allowed on the glass surface during manufacturing and assembly of the glass into its product of use.

Pure Air Systems has been making HEPA and Carbon based air filtration systems since 1985. PAS uses only commercial grade HEPA filters that are certified to be  99.99% efficient on particles 0.3 microns and larger. These systems range in capacity from 250 CFM to 2000 CFM and use variable speed drive motors for better air flow control.

Many of Pure Air Systems’s HEPA units are being used in clean room environments as well as hospital surgery rooms, isolation rooms and food and beverage processes where a more sterile environment is needed.

For more information on the complete line of HEPA and Carbon based systems please go to our website at: www.pureairsystems.com