CleanRooms articles from January 2004

CleanRooms archives from January 2004

Day one of East/PDA Summit will be a solid primer.(CleanZone)(The CleanRooms East/PDA SciTech Summit)
January 1, 2004... ORLANDO, FLA. -- Cleanroom planning and construction, a comprehensive review of worldwide standards and an essential revisit of the basics sums up day one of the CleanRooms East/PDA SciTech Summit, which will be held here at the Orange County...

Expert says no fresh air provided in IBM cleanrooms.(News)
January 1, 2004... SANTA CLARA, CALIF. -- Robert Morris likened the IBM Corp. cleanrooms where James Moore and Alida Hernandez worked to an unfiltered and untreated swimming pool where as many who had swam had urinated. Day in and day out, according to the...

Following break, case heats up again.(News)
January 1, 2004... SANTA CLARA, CALIF. -- After slogging through more than a month of expert testimony and sometimes dramatic legal proceedings, jurors in the ongoing trial against the IBM Corp. (Armonk, N.Y.) and several chemical companies took a two-week break...

Duckweed flourishes as cleanroom cash crop.(News)
January 1, 2004... PITTSBORO, N.C. -- What's green, grainy and grows in a cleanroom? [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] It's not some morphing microbiological contaminant, or even mold, for that matter. It's duckweed--a.k.a. pond scum--and it is the bread and...

Tissue bank employs gamma irradiation.
January 1, 2004... KENNESAW, GA. -- Hoping to prevent the same compliance and contamination issues that have plagued the company for more than two years, CryoLife Inc., the nation's largest supplier of living human tissue, has employed a patented technology that...

Never assume the level of your understanding.(Viewpoint)(Editorial)
January 1, 2004... There's one thing I learned very quickly many years ago when I took over the editorial reins of my first publication--never assume that your entire readership is working on the same level of understanding. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] This...

USP releases sterile compounding regulations.(News)(United States Pharmacopoeia)
January 1, 2004... ROCKVILLE, MD. -- Using syringes free of contamination to transfer sterile drugs and manually measuring and mixing no more than three products to compound drug admixtures and nutritional solutions must be done in an air quality of ISO Class 5...

Japan, Korea will see strongest growth in chip equipment sales surge.(News)(forecast)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... CHIBA, JAPAN -- Leading manufacturers of semiconductor equipment expected sales to increase in 2003 to $21.4 billion--more than eight percent above the $19.8 billion in sales posted in 2002, according to the year-end edition of the Capital...

One tough fab.(Particles)(The University at Albany)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... ALBANY, N.Y. -- The University at Albany's latest building project, the NanoFab 300N, is likely the most robust for miles around, says Tom Yurkewecz, UAlbany's director of programs, who is responsible for overseeing its construction. Extra...

Onion outcries.(Particles)(green onions investigated as hepatitis source)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... MONACA, Pa.. -- Conflicting messages are coming from U.S. and Mexican officials over an investigation into contaminated onions. U.S. officials have linked four Mexican green onion producers to the hepatitis A outbreak at a Chi-Chi's...

Veltek relocates.(Particles)(Veltek Associates Inc.)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... MALVERN, Pa. -- Veltek Associates, Inc. has completed its move from Phoenixville to its new manufacturing facility in this city, located approximately 30 miles west of Philadelphia. The facility is registered with the Food and Drug...

Decontamination wizardry.(Particles)(introduced a hand-held "SterilWand")(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... CERRITOS, Calif. -- Steril-Aire, Inc. has introduced a hand-held "SterilWand" that uses the company's patented UVC technology for decontaminating surfaces infested with mold, bacteria or viruses. You slowly pass the hand-held device...

IEST technical info used in SARS research.(News)(Institute of Environmental Science and Technology, severe acute respiratory syndrome)(Editorial)
January 1, 2004... ROLLING MEADOWS. ILL. -- The Journal of the IEST, published for nearly 50 years by the Institute of Environmental Sciences and Technology (IEST), included topical technical information in its recently published 2003 edition, which was used in...

It's about the people.(On the Beat)(Brief Article)(Editorial)
January 1, 2004... It was the place to work. After all, it was Big Blue--the kind of employer that would provide a nice, fat pension after 30 years of service. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Or so that's what former employees, like Keith Barrack, thought of IBM...

It's time to reclaim and reuse cleanroom consumables.(Electronics)(Editorial)
January 1, 2004... Generally, capital costs and labor expenditures dominate the operating costs of most cleanroom manufacturing operations. In semiconductor manufacturing especially, the capital costs associated with the many multimillion-dollar tools that...

Is medical device manufacturing finally coming clean?(SpecialReport)
January 1, 2004... It's safe to say that sterilization and regulation are the two dominant issues steering the contamination-control practices of the multibillion dollar medical device industry. That may change, however, as new technologies, such as automation,...

Guidelines and considerations for emerging AMC control: molecular contamination has made its way into the cleanroom management vernacular; now it's time to put a smart control system into action. Here's how it's done.(Airborne Molecular Contamination)
January 1, 2004... It's safe to say that airborne molecular contamination (AMC) control has become fully integrated into the cleanroom environmental management requirements of high-tech manufacturing facilities. Cleaning the outside air being used for...

Material delivering system.(Inventor's Corner)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... The material delivery system is particularly useful for filtered environments, such as cleanrooms and minienvironments, where such devices as disk drives are made. [GRAPHIC OMITTED] In on particular embodiment, the system is set up...

Door system.(Inventor's Corner)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... The door system is geared for handling semiconductor components in a cleanroom, and includes a workpiece cassette holder (A), an cleanroom, an atmospheric robot (B), an upper load lock (C) and a lower load lock (D), a vacuum transport chamber...

Environmental monitoring method.(Inventor's Corner)(air pollution analysis device invention)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2004... The apparatus uses an infrared transmitter, which adsorbs the substances in the environment to be measured, and causes reflections of particles adhering to it. An ultraviolet light source is then employed to remove the particles adhering to...

Using SEMI F57 compliance to improve semiconductor fluid-handling systems: gaining SEMI F57 compliance can help reduce commissioning time of fluid-handling systems, improve wafer yields, increase semiconductor equipment life and round off your contamination-control program.(Fluid-Handling Systems)(Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International)
January 1, 2004... As fluid-handling systems face rapid technology advancements and increased system uptime requirements, improved system performance is critical. New technology nodes require increased fluid-purity levels to maintain acceptable wafer yields,...

Quiet efficiency.(Fan Filter Units)
January 1, 2004... Fan filter units--FFUs--are typically placed in ceiling grids (but some can be installed on walls) to create precision airflow in a cleanroom or minienvironment. With ongoing demands for cost-cutting and "smart building" design, FFUs are...

Low power-consumption FFU motors.(Fan Filter Units)
January 1, 2004... The MicroWatt motor options to the company's SAM Group of FFUs are available in 2-, 4- and 6-ft. as well as 4X4 units. The motors feature lower power consumption designed to result in lower operating costs. When used with the company's Airlink...

Constant flow blower.(Fan Filter Units)
January 1, 2004... Lau Blower Units are engineered as integrated wheel/cone/bracket/motor controller packages. They feature the company's backward-curved centrifugal 12-inch wheel with a GE ECM 2.3 series motor that can be programmed to work in conjunction with...

Next-gen system.(Fan Filter Units)
January 1, 2004... The Next Generation FFU System is designed to offer up to 70 percent energy savings compared to a conventional FFU system, plus greater system control that allows for monitoring, remote access and alterations in airflow. Constructed at Oregon...

For pharm processing.(Fan Filter Units)
January 1, 2004... The MAC 10 Rx FFU is designed specifically for pharmaceutical processing environments. It combines low sound and vibration with low watts and a low profile designed to minimize the presence of contaminants in critical areas. Designated RSRE for...

Motor efficiencies.(Fan Filter Units)
January 1, 2004... The GE ECM 2.3 series motors for FFU systems have a speed range of 300 to 1200 RPM. The manufacturer says the motor's permanent magnet DC design lets it maintain its efficiency over a wide speed range--as high as 82 percent, or 20 percent more...

FFU for ceiling or wall.(Fan Filter Units)
January 1, 2004... The F2000 is designed to be installed in a T-grid, gypsum ceiling or in a wall or horizontal installation for increasing air changes per hour in any room in need of upgrading. Constructed of stainless steel, the FFU can draw air from the top or...

Noises off.(Fan Filter Units)
January 1, 2004... Constructed with proprietary sound-inhibiting materials, the Eagle FFU is designed for performance while maintaining exceptionally low decibel readings (below 50) especially suited for cleanrooms with a higher percenage of filter coverage. The...

Jazz up your room.(Fan Filter Units)
January 1, 2004... The JazzFM fan filter module provides filtration for use in conventional and softwall cleanrooms. The module can be used to retrofit and upgrade an existing area or provide clean air at the point of use. The standard unit draws 1.1 amps for the...

Aerosol particle sensor.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... Packaged in a chemically resistant, easy-to-disinfect stainless-steel box, the IsoAir Plus aerosol monitor features 0.5- and 5.0-[micro]m channels for monitoring cGMP compliance. Data downloading is via Ethernet, with data security exceeding...

Walk-in enclosure.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... A compact, walk-in Class II-style clean air and containment enclosure, the BioPRO-tect Jr. accommodates high-throughput robotic systems, ultracentrifuges, flow cytometers, aerosol generators and other pieces of laboratory equipment. The unit...

Desiccator cabinet.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... Series 19 cabinets are constructed with a heavy-gauge stainless-steel outer shell, with a stainless-steel divider between each compartment. Each compartment is sealed to provide a pressurized dry or nitrogen environment for parts storage, and...

Vacuum wand.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... The battery-operated, self-contained FWCR2/3 Freedom Wand vacuum wand for 200- and 300-mm wafers runs continuously for three hours after a 90-minute charge. Direct connect to power supply enables use when batteries are discharged. Ergonomic...

Spill-free coupling.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... Intended for high-purity chemical fluid-handling processes and manufactured with injection-molded virgin polypropylene, the ChemQuik series CQG06 is a connection device for instant, safe, and spill-free disconnections and reconnections. The...

Integrated gas components.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... The IGC II modular and integrated gas components enable semiconductor professionals to develop streamlined gas delivery systems with a more compact size and footprint. The system is built around modular and surface-mount technology, featuring...

Hand wipes.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... Developed to quickly eliminate harmful microorganisms from the skin, CareMates antiseptic hand wipes are pre-moistened with an antiseptic formula that kills 99.9 percent of disease-causing microbes, including pseudomonas aeruginosa,...

Six-axis robot.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... The six-axis robot will offer the same Epson RC+ software and Epson RC520 PC-based controller provided on the Epson Scara robots and Epson EZ modules. According to the manufacturer, companies will be able to build entire factories using one...

Biotech start-up? Don't design for the long-term.(Unfiltered)
January 1, 2004... Start-up companies and researchers in fast-growing biotech areas like metro Washington D.C., San Francisco, Raleigh-Durham and Boston are turning to labs that are the research equivalent of a brown-bag lunch--utilitarian, but basic. A growing...