The Buyer’s Guide to Cleanroom Products

Cleanrooms are carefully controlled enclosed environments that are designed to minimise any variance in temperature or humidity while keeping out any contaminants like dust or particles. Such rooms are often found in manufacturing or research facilities that deal with sensitive products that demand critically clean processes.   
  
That makes cleaning and maintaining cleanrooms a complicated and rigorous process which needs specialised tools, equipment and supplies to manage. Sourcing the right products can be challenging for buyers who are tasked with ensuring cleanrooms are adequately stocked with cleanroom-compatible products while staying in budget. But before we can explore the kinds of cleanroom products, we need to understand why cleanrooms need specialised goods and equipment to function.   

How contaminants sneak into cleanrooms

Cleanrooms are classified according to the number and size of particles permitted per volume of air. That means for a given cleanroom, there is a hard limit to how much dust can be tolerated before it starts to affect the work being conducted in the space. By far, dust is one of the biggest contaminants in cleanrooms. But where does the dust come from? The people who work in the cleanrooms.  
  
Dust particles often contain dead human skin cells, pollen and traces of other biomatter. That’s why every cleanroom has stringent processes for entry and exit, and why cleanroom workers need specialised garments to work in them. 

Particles are measured in microns, which is an extremely small unit of measurement. To give you an idea of just how small a micron is, a single strand of hair about 80-100 microns thick. The naked eye can see particles 50-60 microns and bigger, but any particles smaller than that are effectively invisible.  
  
Keeping a cleanroom free of particles this small requires strict cleaning processes and specialist cleaning equipment. Let’s look at the categories of cleaning materials and equipment cleanroom managers need to meet the compliance requirements for their space.  

Cleaning chemicals and solutions

These includes chemical cleaning agents and detergents, disinfectants and sporicides. When selecting a detergent, it is important to check if it’s compatible with the disinfectant being used in the cleanroom. Due to their composition, some detergents can neutralise the active ingredient in certain disinfectants. A good supplier will be able to help you choose the right disinfectant and detergent combination.   

Disinfectants can have differing efficacies. Some are bacteriostatic, which means they are designed to stop any bacterial growth, but not destroy them. Others are bactericidal, which means they destroy bacterial cells outright. There is a whole spectrum of disinfectants with various anti-bacterial properties, so make sure to pick one that suits your cleanroom. Some disinfectants are also sporicidal, in that they can destroy mould and any fungal contamination.  

Gloves 

Generally, people assume the main purpose of gloves is to protect the person wearing them. But cleanrooms gloves are designed to protect the cleanroom environment from the wearer. While regular gloves and cleanroom gloves may be made of the same materials, cleanroom gloves come with a price premium because of the way they are manufactured. During production, they are chlorinated and rinsed in highly filtered deionised water, often multiple times. They are then dried, packed and sealed, all within a cleanroom environment. Depending on the classification of your cleanroom, you may be fine with regular gloves, or you may need specialised cleanroom gloves. It is worth consulting with your supplier if you are not sure. When choosing between regular gloves and cleanroom gloves, a wrong decision can be extremely costly, risking rework, recalls or rejects if the work area gets contaminated.   

Apparel 

To keep the particle count at acceptable levels, cleanrooms need specialised apparel like  coveralls, shoe covers and face masks. It’s important to understand the distinction between ‘sterile’ apparel and ‘sterile and clean’ apparel. A ‘sterile’ garment is manufactured with ordinary production processes and simply sterilised after the fact. A ‘clean and sterile’ garment is both manufactured and sterilised in a cleanroom environment. Depending on your cleanroom’s classification, you may want to insist on clean-manufactured garments. Always ask to see the data supporting the sterility of your apparel.   

Cleaning goods and equipment 

This covers wipes, swabs and mops as well as cleanroom accessories like tacky mats and tape. While it’s easy to assume that standard cleaning consumables and equipment will be fine for cleanrooms, that is not necessarily the case. You want to make sure that any goods are not only sterilised right out of the pack, but that they won’t leave behind any residues or particles which could compromise the cleanroom. While saving a few dollars on cleaning goods can seem attractive, the costs of a compromised batch of work or contaminated equipment can be much higher.  

Labware and equipment 

Every cleanroom needs especially designed equipment to ensure that the environment always stays pristine. This can include everything from general labware to specific devices like air samplers and lab fume hoods. Any tools or devices used in a cleanroom must be easy to sterilise after each use and be ergonomic and well-designed to maximise the productivity of cleanroom workers.  

Find the right goods for your cleanroom  

Cleanrooms are resource-intensive spaces that require a lot of upkeep and stringent control. That comes with higher operational costs, including sourcing cleanroom products and equipment. But there are opportunities to find cost-efficiencies in sourcing these materials, depending on the type of cleanroom you are managing. Working closely with a reputable supplier is one of the best ways to find the products best suited for your cleanroom and determine how frequently you would need to restock.   

  
Get in touch with Thermo Fisher Scientific to discuss how our range of cleanroom products can optimise your cleanroom operations and help ensure your cleanroom environment always stays safe, protected and pristine.