Environmental Chambers and Cleanroom

Cost, consistency and customization are keys to choosing the right environment
for testing and/or production.

As budgets for R&D balloon, it is crucial to understand the bevy of choices available for environmental and clean room technologies. While initially appealing, an off-the-shelf solution can provide some cost savings on the come in price. Yet, customization may prove the wisest investment over a period of 10 years or more.

Additionally, a large secondary market of used equipment is beginning to emerge that might provide high value dependent on condition, warranty, pricing, support and other factors that should be investigated with any used piece of equipment – especially something as crucially important as testing.

Best-in-Class Environmental Chambers and Clean Rooms Features:

• Customization of room, spec or environmental stressor
• Durability and consistency to maintain conditions not just during testing but over years of usage
• Easily generated data for test result integration

Top Considerations before Buying Environmental Chambers and/or Clean Rooms:

Product lifecycle is a key determinant to purchasing the correct environmental chamber and/or clean room. Having a keen understanding of whether the investment can scale with not just product R&D but human capital is crucial. Initial savings on a static product might not lead to the best expenditure over the life of the product whereas a custom solution may sustain growth consistent with projected production levels year to year.

Key Products:

1. Constant Climate Chambers from BINDER covers the “classic” temperature range between -40 degrees F and 356 degrees F. Additionally, the chambers offer preheat capabilities for a more realistic simulation. BINDER focuses on precisions climatic solutions to serve their clients’ needs from square footage to environmental stressors. The firm spans simulation technology, process technology, measurement and control technology, lighting technology, vacuum technology, and corresponding software solutions.

2. Now offering a series of tabletop solutions that allow for wide range of temperature and environmental variants, Hastest Solutions Inc focuses on the testing of Photovoltaic (solar) products including solar panels, Semiconductors, Biotech, Aerospace, Automotive products, Storage devices and material such as wood, rubber, polymers, plastic, concrete, steel and others. Specifically, environmental variants include dust settle, salt spray, blown sand test chambers, and solar generation. Hastest offers a portal that offers tips on choosing the right chamber for your solution from square footage to environmental variant.
 
3. Altitude and Vacuum Chambers by Bemco Inc  offer a simplified, combination solution for users looking both variants. California-based Bemco, in addition to the aforementioned product line, also offers thermal shrouds, fluid chillers, gas conditioners, and many other products to actually simulate or achieve the environments promised. A series of stress screening glass doors and multi-zone vertical shock solutions are also available. From an ownership perspective, Bemco offers a rental and/or lease option for some of their products, allowing clients a potential lower come in cost.

4. Offsite Stability Storage, a relatively new concept in the market, is offered by Parameter Generation & Control, Inc. Offsite features include storage of products that require ICH specified environmental conditions. The GMP facility contains chambers that have been mapped and validated for FDA mandated long and short-term shelf life studies under various temperature and humidity requirements -- including intermediate testing and accelerated testing per ICH Q1A (R2). Additionally, the firm provides back up conditioner and controls that will maintain any stability room or chamber if the primary conditioner goes down, plus a back-up generator to power the entire facility.

5. Offering alternatives to traditional clean room environments, Banthrax Corporation specializes in discreet solutions for clients looking to solve hazmat and environmental challenges but don’t have budget or need  a solution that overwhelms their infrastructure. The company’s Safe-T-Dome Protective Environment circumvents the need for a massive hazmat cleanup. Additionally, the Dome weighs approximately 20 pounds and can be used in a variety of climates on any flat, hard surface. The Dome will also operate on a 12-volt car battery for a week in the event of a prolonged power outage or in geographies where electricity is unreliable. User training is under 20 minutes.

Environmental Clean Rooms
Definition: An environmental clean room is a sealed space having a controlled environment where products are manufactured. Such clean rooms control the concentration of airborne particles, eliminating sub-micron contaminants.

Environmental Chambers
Definition: Small, environmentally sealed spaces such as cabinet size standalone units to bench top devices, offering  environmental test solutions capable of temperature and humidity cycling, thermal shock, production stress screening, accelerated stress testing systems for HALT and HASS, combined environment testing, controlled humidity exposure, altitude simulation, and vibration testing. See also environmental clean rooms.