Issue

Airborne molecular contaminants (AMCs) are non-particulate contaminants that easily penetrate conventional HEPA and ULPA filters. Like particles, AMCs consist of molecules, or clusters of molecules.

Monitoring an ultra-pure water (UPW) system requires more than just watching meters, tabulating numbers and looking at charts.

Selecting an optical particle counter (OPC) can appear deceptively simple. Typically, the specification focuses on sensitivity, flow rate, size range and coincidence loss. Secondary requirements are number of channels, the sample/hold periods and alarm limits.

Minienvironment monitor; Clean process oven; Washable ESD sheet; Glassware washer...

When designing a cleanroom, the big issues that immediately come to mind include cost, cleanliness rating and efficiency. But when you consider the fact that the cleanroom industry is fragmented into more than 100,000 elements, that overall design task can seem daunting.

Los Alamitos, CA—In a move that will allow it to offer manufacturing capabilities, textile distributor American Mill Sales has acquired 32-year-old Acme Laundry Products, including the Hi-Tec Garment Division.

WATERTOWN, MA—A biotech firm specializing in products that remove microorganisms from donor blood says it has a system that will inactivate the virus that causes foot-and-mouth disease, a pathogen that scientists have long considered one of the most potent and difficult to kill.

Applied Materials expands in PRC; Coating maintains "like new" appearance; Pall unveils filtration technology...

This month's graphic shows the past, present and future of capital spending by some of the top IC manufacturers in North America. It's no surprise to see Intel leading the pack with $4.5 billion in spending forecasted in 2002, a big decline from 2001.

AUSTIN, TX—The story from October's Semicon Southwest trade show and conference was no different from most shows that took place over the past two months.

CHELMSFORD, MA—In a deal valued at $380 million, Brooks Automation has acquired PRI Automation (Billerica, MA). According to analysts, the deal between the companies makes sound business sense due to respective market strengths and little overlap in minienvironment and automation product lines.

LANSING, MI—To date, there isn't one facility approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to manufacture the anthrax vaccine. That's because, three years ago, the only facility approved to manufacture was shut down by the FDA for not maintaining current good manufacturing practices (cGMPs.)

SHANGHAI—Who would have thought it only a few months ago? China seems to be growing an entrepreneurial semiconductor foundry industry—thanks to the success of an aggressive drive to recruit industry talent from Taiwan.

CHANDLER, AZ—Back when capital expenditures seemed to increase quarterly, Intel announced plans to build Fab 22 on its campus here.

SALT LAKE CITY, UT—The threat of cross contamination on wheels was just one of the dilemmas Jerry Nelson pondered throughout the 14-month expansion of Nelson Laboratories Inc. Polypropylene carts used to transport sterility test samples in and out of ISO Class 5 (Class 100) suites could provide carte blanche for stowaway pathogens...

The sound of coins hitting metal was the first thing I heard when I picked up the phone. "Is this Mark?" asked a raspy voice, squeezing through background chatter and slot machine bells that could be at a handful of places.

Cleanroom remodeling; Auxiliary device for filter exchange; Particle sensor...

The savings—fewer filters, fans, chillers, coils, pumps, motors, less steel and concrete—were actually outweighed by the additional costs of the minienvironments themselves, including I/O ports, pods, cassettes and carriers, robots and automation.

No one likes to be told what to do. We balked when our parents corrected us, and as adults, we certainly don't appreciate direct orders that change or alter our day-to-day business procedures—especially when we believe they've been working well for years.

America has always been a diverse nation of innovative people, and when faced with a threat to our freedom and safety, that innovation has often been realized through invention or adaptation of technology.

By putting this application to work you can solve the problem of using a condensation particle counter (CPC) to measure particle concentrations in oxygen or hydrogen—both present safety concerns if used with butyl alcohol, the working fluid used in the most common, commercially available CPC.

Viruses may run rampant, but they cannot hide from technologies like those of a Bedford, MA-based biotech firm's DNA-impersonator, a blood culture canvassing agent that shines a fluorescent spotlight on trespassing microorganisms.

2001 CleanRooms Editorial Index

There is a global concern among world health organizations and regulatory agencies regarding the quality of nonconductive materials, including protective-barrier materials such as glovebox gloves.

Before entering into the critical minienvironement integration strategies, let's first take a look at the basics.

No one ever thought writing a set of global standards for cleanrooms or controlled environments would be easy or fast. In fact, as we stand on the brink of 2002, it has been more than eight years since contamination-control professionals from varied industries and from around the world first convened to draw up ISO standards 14644 and 14698. And it could still be another six months or more until the last of the 10 separate standards are released.