Manufacturing processes have evolved over the past few decades. Thirty years ago very few people per capita owned cellular phones, much less the smart versions that everyone carries now. Likewise, the sophisticated development of environmental controls have improved quality control procedures in pharmaceutical and scientific research labs.
The birth of the digital age has generated new opportunities, but also new challenges. The need for a controlled environment that ensures contaminant-free processes has grown. Today, clean rooms are an integral part of production. Even if you don’t have one at your facility, odds are that some of your components were created in a clean room. These specialized areas provide sanitary conditions for manufacturing a variety of products and substances.
Clean Rooms 101
Typically used in process or discrete manufacturing, clean rooms establish an environment that is free from airborne pollutants like dust, microbes, chemical vapors and aerosol elements. Depending on the number of particles present in a cubic meter or foot of the air, the level of controlled detoxification designates the room’s standard.
In the average city’s breathable atmosphere, there are approximately 35 million of airborne particles larger than .5 mm in each cubic meter. Clean rooms receive classification according to the number of particles permitted, such as of 100, or 1000, per volume of air. The sanitary environment is necessary for the production of biotech and medical equipment, optics and pharmaceuticals, and for manufacturing semi-conductors.
Precision Environmental Controls
Because contaminant-free conditions must be maintained at all times in certain production processes, clean rooms require continuous climate control, specific air filtration measures, and even special clothing for workers. Employees are trained in techniques that keep particle contamination to a minimum, and HVAC units run constantly. Depending on the level of purity required, full coverage suits and masks are often used to prevent human contamination.
Air units are fitted with high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) and ultra-low particulate air (ULPA) filters. HEPA filters trap particles that are at least .3 microns in size, and ULPA are designed to sift out elements even smaller. Laminar (unidirectional) air flow principles are applied for circulation. Air is circulated to maximize downstream returns.
Why is Air Quality Essential in Clean Rooms?
Clean rooms and their use have significantly evolved over the years, primarily because of the skyrocketed production levels in pharmaceutical, electronic, and other similar industries. In fact, laboratories continue to be equipped with technological appliances that require optimal care and regulatory compliance, especially when it comes to cleanliness, quality control, and overall workplace hygiene. This is also where the need for optimal air quality in clean rooms comes in.
Whether you’re associated with the chemical industry or serve as a pharmaceutical researcher, you must know how crucial it is to first ensure that you’re working in an environmentally-controlled space that supports your experiment and the overall purpose of the study. As a result, it becomes essential to think about air quality in clean rooms and what it means for meeting health, safety, and cleanliness standards when trying to maintain optimal lab standards.
If precision matters to your industry then a clean room is essential for production to meet the highest standards of quality. Such work areas would invariably be indoors thus requiring an HVAC system for heating and cooling control. HVAC systems reduce humidity levels creating dry air conditions. The most serious issue in a clean room arising from dry air is an environment primed for static electricity. Some of the problematic effects of static electricity are:
- Static attracts dust.
- Dust interferes with electrical contacts.
- Human interaction with electronic devices can generate an electrical discharge that can cause damage to the device.
Today, most clean rooms are able to keep airborne contaminants and similar risks at bay because of the improved indoor air quality offered by industrial humidification systems. Here are three reasons why it’s helpful for such spaces.
Prevention of Contamination
Clean rooms serve a wide range of purposes, depending on the industry or organization they’re involved in. From the designing and manufacturing of electronic equipment and hardware to the production of intense medication and biotechnological studies, clean rooms continue to provide people with highly controlled environments that are free of contaminants like pathogens, dust, viruses, and bacteria.
The air quality in clean rooms offered by humidifiers for commercial use plays a significant role in this process. In fact, it’s one of the key factors that keep the clean room equipment disinfected at all times without allowing airborne particles from the outside to jeopardize the indoor environment.
To Keep Working Spaces Clean and Dust-Free
A significant requirement for working in clean rooms is to have clean, spotless, and dust-free workspaces. This means that the machinery or apparatus used in these areas shouldn’t contribute to the generation of pathogens and bacteria in the clean room environment.
Fortunately, with industrial humidification systems supporting the air quality in clean rooms, it’s easier to meet this goal. In fact, this allows workers to get the reassurance they need to work safely in a controlled indoor atmosphere and get accurate readings and data throughout the manufacturing or development process.
For Workers’ Health and Safety
Apart from improving operational processes, the air quality in clean rooms is also a significant determinant of workers’ health and safety, primarily because of the risk of being exposed to hazardous chemicals and equipment.
Thanks to commercial humidifiers, you can ensure that your workers’ health and safety are safeguarded and that they can work in that space for hours without feeling unwell.
If you want to improve the air quality in your clean room, make sure you check out our commercial humidification systems at Smart Fog. Our Smart Fog ES100 is the ideal choice for a wide range of industrial applications. Contact us to learn more today!
How Humidity Control Works
The static is caused by imbalances between the negative and positive charges of particulates in the air. As the particles accumulate they will eventually release their charges when they come into contact with any conductive material. Since water is a conductor, by introducing controlled humidity levels into the air the particles of moisture come into contact with the imbalanced particulates. The excess static electricity charge is then absorbed into the particle of water rather than discharging through human contact with work materials.
The Role of Industrial Humidifiers
Because they have precise temperature, atmospheric purity, and air flow requirements, clean rooms use high levels of energy. A single static discharge or airborne contaminant can ruin expensive product batches, eliminating profits. An industrial humidification system helps maintain the perfect conditions required for production.
Correct humidity levels ensure that coatings on pharmaceutical products dry correctly. The amount of moisture in the air influences packaging and eliminates static discharges that have the power to damage electronics like semi-conductors and other components used in discrete manufacturing processes.
Older model systems require high amounts of electricity and use moving parts to heat water for operation. This type of humidification is prone to maintenance issues and other problems. Moreover, the vapor used to achieve certain relative humidity settings can actually collect on surfaces, damaging equipment and inventories.
New technology eliminates the difficulties experienced with older style systems. A 4.2 micron droplet achieves 100 percent evaporation, ensuring that no surfaces accumulate moisture. De-correlation technology enhances the clean room environment by attracting and removing dust and airborne contaminates in the air. Additional benefits include:
- Increased energy efficiency—new systems draw less power, reducing energy costs.
- Improved 24/7 climate controls—the correct level of humidity reduces the strain on your HVAC assets and ensures that equipment operates at the optimal level.
- Heightened atmospheric purity—de-correlation removes particles in the air before they reach air filters, cleaning the environment better.
- Eliminate static discharge—moisture naturally dampens electrical charges that are generated by moving parts.
- Improved efficiency and productivity—humidification systems not only reduce the production issues in clean rooms, they improve the working conditions for employees. Employee health is enhanced by a reduction in sinus and dry skin issues.
- Industrial humidifiers that utilize advanced technology are providing measurable improvements in clean room production. Ensuring that precision climate controls are met and that products and equipment won’t be ruined through contamination helps increase profit margins and enhance productivity for clean room
- manufacturers.
Clean rooms are typically used for manufacturing electronics, laboratory research or any other activity that requires a sterile environment free from dust and other airborne contaminants. There are federal and global standards for clean rooms rating their cleanliness according to concentration levels of airborne particulates. A commercial humidifier is one of the key pieces of equipment used to control air quality.
Today’s Smart Humidifiers
State-of-the-art technology in today’s commercial humidifiers provides reliable humidity control that not only maintains consistent levels of moisture in the air but also collects and records data about air quality. Environmental variables are constantly affecting a clean room’s air quality. Rapid changes can occur unobserved. However a smart humidifying system has the information that allows it to automatically compensate.
Smart technology allows precise control of the size of water droplet and algorithms that monitor the target area of a clean room. This results in consistent humidity levels with water droplet size measured so that droplets evaporate before reaching the floor. This smart design eliminates the problem of wet spots.
Productivity
In addition to protecting products from the negative effects of static electricity, another benefit of a commercial humidifier is increased productivity. Ergonomic studies indicate that air quality affects productivity levels in workers. Humidity and temperature work together to create the climactic conditions of a work environment.
Optimum temperature for highest productivity is 66-77 degrees Fahrenheit. As temperature increases or decreases by even a few degrees, productivity can be affected negatively by as much as 5%. However, to create the best environmental conditions for productivity, there is more to the formula than dialing in the right temperature on a thermostat.
Humidity affects how the body perceives environmental temperature. Too much humidity inhibits the human body from sweating which is how a body cools its self. High humidity then makes a person feel warmer, more uncomfortable. Drier air can have the opposite affect, causing a person to feel colder than the actual ambient temperature. It also causes physical feelings of discomfort in the throat, nasal passages and surface of the skin. On average a 40% relative humidity level is considered optimal for human comfort.
Quality Control & Productivity
Industry has two key issues that are always at the forefront: quality control and productivity. For companies who require clean room environments a commercial humidifier is a tool that will address and improve conditions for both issues. Companies who seek superior controls for their production environment should opt for Smart Fog humidifiers that will provide these benefits:
- Humidifying fog that will not promote the growth of mold.
- Controlled humidifying that eliminates the creation of wet spots.
- Lower maintenance costs as compared to traditional steam systems.
- Energy efficient design which reduces operation cost.
- Versatile system to meet the needs of any size operation.
- Increased productivity by creating and controlling optimal work environment conditions.
To get your non-wetting humidifying solution, please contact us. Our experienced professionals can help you select a Smart Fog product that will meet the needs of your clean room and achieve the highest quality standards.
