High-calibre + international: The programme for the 2016 Cleanzone Congress is now set

Cleanzone Kongress 2016, Messe Frankfurt/Sandra Gätke

International cleanroom experts will be discussing current trends in cleanroom technology at the Cleanzone Congress 2016. The congress, which is taking place alongside the international Cleanzone trade fair on 8 and 9 November in Frankfurt am Main, features a high-calibre roster of speakers. The four congress modules, “Back to basics”, “Planning, layout, construction”, “Qualification” and “Production process and validation: optimization during operation”, cover all aspects of production under controlled conditions and combine theory and practice. Ruth Lorenz, Vice President Technology & Production at Messe Frankfurt, explains: “The demands on cleanroom production are continuously changing, including as a result of new standards and guidelines. The congress taking place parallel to the trade fair offers an outstanding opportunity to find out about all the latest developments in the field of cleanrooms.”

The congress programme was developed by ReinraumAkademie and an international congress panel in collaboration with Messe Frankfurt. Frank Duvernell, Managing Director of ReinraumAkademie, sums up the concept of this year's Cleanzone Congress: “We placed particular emphasis on covering all aspects of cleanroom production, from construction through to operation, to ensure that participants can find out everything about all the latest trends in the field of cleanrooms. I am particularly pleased that we have once again been able to attract an array of international experts and luminaries from the industry."

In the “Back to basics” module, participants will be offered insight into the various aspects of production under controlled conditions, from standardisation and the selection of suitable materials to cleanroom processes and cleaning. Speakers include Frans Saurwalt, Kropman Contamination Control, who will be talking about the requirements for walls, floors and ceilings. As Frans Saurwalt is involved in the international standardisation of cleanrooms ISO/TC209 as a member of Working Group 4 “Design and Construction”, he will be able offer congress participants a first-hand account of standards and process optimisation in cleanrooms, the latter being of decisive importance in remaining competitive. Michael Skerat from Skeratschoppe and Lukas Schober from Kalucon believe that the logistics value chain for cleanrooms offers tremendous scope for potential savings. In their presentation to the Cleanzone Congress, they address the degree to which processes from the automotive industry can be transferred to cleanroom production.

What is the optimum method for planning a cleanroom to ensure that it can satisfy all of the requirements? These themes are dealt with in the module “Planning, layout, construction”. One issue that is extremely relevant at present concerns the assignment of liability for intelligent and autonomous technical systems. Professor Dr. Hans-Hermann Dirksen from Liebenstein Law is an expert in this field. He has provided us with an advance look at his presentation for the Cleanzone Congress: “More and more Industry 4.0 technology will be making autonomous decisions without human intervention, and this poses the question as to how responsibility will be assigned. What is the scope of product liability, who is the manufacturer, and what will be the resulting liability chains? Who will be liable for faults and downtimes? Intelligent liability in cleanrooms will have to be able to distinguish between faulty data sources and data generation on the one hand, and incorrect data transmission on the other. My presentation will demonstrate that liability risks in closed user systems must primarily be dealt with via contractually agreed terms of participation for the operation of such systems, in order to place limits on the scope of liability.”

Another top theme in the “Planning, layout, construction” module will be the new version of E DIN 1946-4:2016-06 for air handling and ventilation systems in buildings and rooms in the healthcare sector. The fact that the distinctions between cleanrooms in hospitals and cleanrooms as production and research facilities are disappearing is one of the most significant changes to arise from the revised standard. Detailed information on this will be provided by Ralph Langholz from Mann + Hummel Vokes Air at the Cleanzone Congress.

In order to be able to enter into operation, systems must be validated, or “qualified”, following their completion. The “Qualification” module deals with this topic. Rino Woyczyk, Drees & Sommer and Vice President of VIP3000, a group promoting the interests of those involved in pharmaceutical construction, will be talking about actively dealing with crises during planning and after completion. An important part of the validation/qualification process is documentation, and this will be the topic of the presentation given by Claudia Pachl from Valtec: “My presentation deals with the question as to which documents are of particular relevance during the validation/qualification process, and the role that good project planning has in this regard. I will explain why documentation should not just be seen as an annoyance, but rather as something quite helpful and beneficial, as the right documentation makes it possible to render the validation/qualification process more efficient.”

The “Production process and validation: optimization during operation” module will be taking a look at the challenges cleanrooms will face in future, and the changing standards that will arise as a result. Dr. Berthold Düthorn from Robert Bosch offers a look at the ongoing revision of the standard ISO TC 209 “Cleanrooms and associated controlled environments”. Dr. Düthorn serves as an expert and chairperson on a number of working groups for ISO TC 209, and offers a glimpse of what congress participants can expect from his presentation: “The individual standards from the 14644 and 14698 family of standards are listed, and the ways in which their content is related are detailed. Furthermore, there will be an overview of ongoing standardisation projects, including the formulation of new standards and revision of existing standards. Listeners will also be given insight into the strategy for ISO TC 209 derived from the business plan, the working plan for the next few years and changes that are already planned for the near future.”

Whether it be 100 micrometres or 100 nanometres, the particles that must be monitored for production under controlled conditions vary in size by a factor of 1,000 or more, and this ratio continues to grow as structures get smaller and smaller. Dr. Udo Gommel from Fraunhofer IPA describes the demands this places on measurement strategies. Finally, Josef Ortner from Ortner Reinraumtechnik will conclude the Cleanzone Congress with a look ahead in which he discusses the future requirements for working in cleanrooms.

AMC – a challenge for cleanroom technology

Airborne molecular contamination (AMC) presents major challenges for the micro-technology sector. What can be done to reduce production downtimes resulting from airborne contaminants such as acids, bases and silicones? What measurement and filter technology is currently available on the market? To answer this question, on 8 November Markus Thamm from Cleanroom.de will be offering a workshop targeted at users from the semiconductor industry, aerospace technology and the high-end plastics sector. Anyone interested in the workshop can simply book a congress module.

Those who are interested can get tickets to Cleanzone and the Cleanzone Congress. Trade fair tickets are available free of charge if you register by 21 October.