How to Choose the Right Cleanroom for Your Needs?

Cleanrooms are an important part of whatever environment we want to ensure is clean and free of contaminants. Whether you need a cleanroom for pharmaceuticals, electronics, or any other industry, the wrong cleanroom can cause your product’s quality and safety to suffer. 

However, when there are so many varieties in Malaysia, how do you make sure that you select the right cleanroom that can most suit your own needs?

The key to making the right decision is understanding clean room standard, the types of cleanrooms available, and the requirements of your business. 

Read on in this article as we walk you through the selection of the right cleanroom to use in Malaysia. After that’s done, you’ll understand how to choose the right cleanroom for your business needs.

Understanding Cleanroom Standards in Malaysia

Before diving into the selection process, it's important to understand what makes a cleanroom compliant with clean room standards. Cleanroom accordingly, these standards are set to make sure that the environment inside of the cleanroom is at a certain cleanliness level and controlled amount of contamination. Common standards include ISO 14644-1, which provides its levels of cleanliness for cleanrooms and Federal Standard 209E (most frequently used in the USA).

In Malaysia, industries such as pharmaceutical manufacturing, biotechnology, electronics, and aerospace often have to comply with both local and international clean room standards. No matter if you are setting up a new cleanroom space or upgrading an existing one you are going to want to make sure that your cleanroom meets the strict criteria for particulate contamination, temperature, humidity, and airflow quality.

Types of Cleanrooms and Their Requirements

Different cleanrooms exist for all standards and industry requirements. The following types of cleanrooms are commonly found in Malaysia:

1. ISO Class 1 to ISO Class 9 Cleanrooms

ISO Class cleanrooms cleanrooms are divided by how many and how big particles allowed from volume of air per unit. An example would be ISO Class 1 Cleanroom wherein here the only minimum number of particles (more than 0.5 microns in size) per cubic meter of air and an ISO Class 9 cleanroom that is less stringent and allows more particles. Cleanliness must equal to the level of sensitivity of your operations.

For example, semiconductor and pharmaceutical manufacturing industries need the highest standards (ISO Class 1-3) because they must be free of contamination in their sensitive products. And industries dealing with less sensitive items may need to be ISO Class 7 or 8.

2. Modular Cleanrooms

Modular cleanrooms are a flexible and customizable, expandable and reconfigurable solution suited to meet changing need. Pre-fabricated panels and components are easy to assemble, disassemble or reconfigure. Modular cleanrooms are a popular concept especially in Malaysia as businesses in industries such as production processes have evolving production processes or industries require considerable scalability.

3. Hard-Wall Cleanrooms

Rigid walls normally made from metal or composite material, a hard-wall cleanroom. They are used in environments where you need precise control of contaminants, temperature and humidity. Cleanroom, hard-wall cleanrooms are specifically designed to excel at contamination control and provide a built to last product. A hard wall cleanroom may be the best choice for long term reliability if your operation needs it.

4. Soft-Wall Cleanrooms

Soft-wall cleanrooms are formed with flexible materials like vinyl, fabric or plastic sheeting, and are soft wall cleanrooms. Instead of investing big money up front into a permanent building, the cleanrooms are a more cost effective and portable option for operations that require a quick setup and quick removal. Although not as durable or rigid as hard wall cleanrooms it may still yield satisfactory cleanroom conditions for less critical environments. Usually, soft wall cleanrooms are used in Malaysia on small scale operation or temporary setup.

Major Considerations When Selecting A Cleanroom

After you familiarize yourself with the different types of cleanrooms, there is plenty to ponder if you are to be in the cleanroom performance and having it fit your needs. Alright, let’s go over the parts you should evaluate when selecting a cleanroom.

1. Industry Requirements

Each industry has different contamination control needs. In the case of a pharmaceutical company or a manufacturing unit, you will need several times more level of cleanliness than a food processing plant. Therefore, it’s essential to define the clean room standards that are relevant to your industry.

It’s important to know your specific requirements for temperature, humidity, airflow and contamination levels before you head to the store. This will give you some enlightenment on what ISO class, airflow systems you have to select for your cleanroom.

2. Size and Space Requirements

It should be big enough to operate with no loss of performance. The size of your cleanroom will depend on the type of equipment used, the amount of personnel and the size of the operations.

When you choose the size of your cleanroom, keep in mind that your space may expand. Some growth and changes in your production or operational needs just might be anticipated. For this case, opting for modular cleanroom environments will bring the flexibility and scalability your business might require down the road.

3. Airflow Systems

Airflow is one of the most critical issues of the cleanroom. How contaminants are removed and filtered from the air is affected by it. Air cleanliness in cleanrooms is reliant upon high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters and laminar airflow systems. While you may need ultra-low penetration air (ULPA) filters depending on what you need in Malaysia, these provide even higher levels of contamination control.

You’ll be evaluating the air velocity and direction as well as the number of air changes per hour (ACH). The greater the stringent cleanroom standards, the larger the number of air changes will be. For instance, ISO Class 1 cleanrooms might have to change air 600 times per hour, Class 2 can be 100 while lower Class so forth.

Conclusion

Choosing the best cleanroom for your needs in Malaysia from reputable manufacturers like Green Excel Engineering & Consultancy Sdn Bhd requires some consideration and preparation. By evaluating the clean room standards that apply to your industry, determining the right type of cleanroom, considering factors such as airflow, material selection, and future scalability, you’ll be well on your way to making an informed decision.

A cleanroom is more than just a place; it’s your company’s investment in its quality, safety, and productivity. It will always be a better idea to work with experts to walk you around the process and make sure that the cleanroom you opt for matches the requisite standards needed in your case.