Issue

German standards updated; Operating theatre system reduces infection; Cleanroom alliance takes root ...

Leica Microsystems Inc. (Deerfield, IL) has opened a demonstration and customer training facility in Wetzlar, Germany.

HUDDERSFIELD, ENGLAND—Bulk powder handling systems supplier Extract Technology Ltd. and its subsidiaries have been acquired by Carlisle Companies Inc. (Syracuse, NY).

FRANKFURT, GERMANY--As design rules drop to 0.18 micron, finding a solution to airborne molecular contamination (AMC) is proving crucial to makers of 300-mm semiconductor wafers, says Stephan Ziegart, who is responsible for the design and construction of cleanrooms for Wacker Chemie GmbH (Burghausen, Germany).

MELBOURNE, UK--Clean modules Ltd., a five-year-old manufacturer of modular cleanrooms, recently brought its first mobile cleanroom online for the Pharmacy Department of Queen Elisabeth Hospital NHS at Kings Lynn, UK--a concept company officials hope to promote worldwide.

EINDHOVEN, NETHERLANDS?With electronic business booming in Europe, companies are going to great lengths to find, hire and train qualified, technically savvy cleanroom workers.

Cleanroom takes aim at Listeria; Taiwan chipmakers report little damage from quake; Wilshire Technologies signs definitive agreement of sale with Foamex Asia ...

AMC contaminants are not real particles anymore.

CleanRooms magazine received a silver award for "Best single news story" in the East region and took home the bronze award for the same article at the National Editorial Excellence awards ceremony held at the Embassy of Finland in Washington, DC, on June 21.

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA?The consumables segment of the cleanrooms industry has traditionally been highly fragmented, with a large number of suppliers focusing on niche or regional markets.

LOS ANGELES—Godfrey Harris is looking for volunteers. The managing director of Pulsatron Technology Corp., the maker of the Pulsatech device, is looking for companies that are seeking new ways of combating contamination in the manufacturing and cleanroom process.

BERKELEY, CA—Just as electro-static discharge (ESD) has rocked circuitry, substrate and disk drive makers, electrostatic attraction (ESA)—a static field created from contaminants in the air—is increasingly becoming more of a concern, especially in the 300-mm arena.

FREMONT, CA?American Xtal Inc. (AXT) is making news that may impact contamination control throughout the semiconductor industry. It's just not the kind of press that any company wants.

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA?The approval of permanent normalized trade relations (PNTR) with China will give manufacturers who use cleanrooms a huge new supply of labor, but it may take some time for the country's skill level and infrastructure to reach industry standards, experts say.

MOUNT PROSPECT, IL ? Highlighting its strengths and educating the contamination control industry are two items on the agenda in the coming year for the Institute of Environment Sciences and Technology (IEST), new president Robert Spector says.

SAN JOSE, CA/BOSTON—Over the past decade the number of students enrolled in technical degree programs has dropped by at least one-third. Considering the semiconductor industry's dependence on skilled workers to staff cleanrooms, this statistic presents a problem nationwide.

Atmosphere control; Exhaust system; Air shower and gown; Rope sling cover

The model of the filter supply plenum with velocity vectors has appeared in several trade journals in recent years. To my knowledge it has never received criticism similar to that offered by Mr. Charlie Middleton (CleanRooms, June 2000, p. 6).

Every so often a pure fact slaps you across the face, awakening you to an obvious reality. I experienced such a moment as I walked the floor at CleanRooms Europe 2000 in Frankfurt.

As part of our continuing coverage of the new ISO Global Cleanroom Standards, this month we look into ISO 14644-5 "Cleanroom Operations." If you use or operate a cleanroom or plan to do so, you need to know what is in 14644-5.

All compounds developed with the intention of becoming a pharmaceutical product are potent by definition because they will have an effect upon the human being. The effect is beneficial for those who the compound is intended to treat but can cause significant damage to individuals for which the treatment is not intended.

Past columns have discussed the measurement of particles entrained in various mediums, using well-established optical scattering instruments. Of more direct impact and interest to a manufacturer, however, are the particles on a product surface. And indeed commercial instruments — surface scanners — are readily available for measuring particles on surfaces, the most common instruments being those based on light scattering or, alternatively, optical imaging.

The effects of electrostatic attraction and its role in contamination control will likely be a greater concern with 300 mm, even in ISO Class 3 (Class 1) cleanrooms; if this potential problem is not properly considered, a fab could experience a 20 percent increase in particles/wafer pass on all tools.

E-commerce emerges as a new distribution channel for cleanroom products, but some suppliers and distributors remain cautious. While many companies take a sink-or-swim approach to e-commerce, ever-prudent cleanroom suppliers and distributors are still testing the waters.

The trend toward miniaturization and other developments in modern industrial technology have necessitated unprecedented degrees of accuracy and reliability obtainable only in an extremely clean environment.

Microbial air sampler from Cole-Parmer Instrument Co.; Vinyl laminate from Lamart Corp.; Humidity transmitter from Vaisala Inc.; Pump from Tri-Clover Inc. ...