In the contamination control business, great products are not enough. Last month in these pages we described the detection of cytotoxics outside Class II biological safety cabinets, putting pharmacists and nurses at risk for cancer [“Contaminants found outside Class II BSCs,” CleanRooms, Sept., p.1].

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At the EOS/ESD symposium in Orlando in late September, we learned that Motorola still encountered static problems after buying and installing ionization equipment in one of its semiconductor fabs [see “ESD-induced lockups,” pg 4].


In follow-up coverage to the Class II cabinet story this month [see “Technology may be culprit behind Class II BSC contamination” p. 1], the cabinet makers suggest that responsibility for the contamination problem lies with the cabinet users and the technique they employ while using them. Likewise, in the Motorola fab, technique appears to be an issue: the installation of ionization equipment without grounding isolated conductors caused lockups in newer model steppers that had been added recently.

In follow-up coverage to the Class II cabinet story this month [see “Technology may be culprit behind Class II BSC contamination” p. 1], the cabinet makers suggest that responsibility for the contamination problem lies with the cabinet users and the technique they employ while using them. Likewise, in the Motorola fab, technique appears to be an issue: the installation of ionization equipment without grounding isolated conductors caused lockups in newer model steppers that had been added recently.

The jury may still be out regarding the extent to which user technique contributed to the contamination found outside the Class II cabinets (researchers did not study that aspect in the current effort but it has been documented in previous studies). But one thing is clear: the best contamination control products in the world can&#39t do the job by themselves. The human factor is as important, if not more important, than the products themselves.

It&#39s not simply an issue of training, as important as that is. The people entering and exiting clean space must of course observe the proper protocol and know what to do when it&#39s not being observed by others. But like the case in the Motorola fab, there needs to be a shared commitment among the cleanroom users and suppliers to work together when static or other forms of contamination present difficult problems.

So check your own level of commitment as well as that of the suppliers with whom you work. The cleaner your manufacturing space, and the tighter and more precise the manufacturing operations, the greater the need for partners who will work with you to achieve your goals.

George D. Miller

Editorial Director