International, innovative and interdisciplinary: Cleanzone Digital Edition focused on controlling COVID-19 and on cleanroom solutions for high-tech products

Cleanzone Award: Siegerehrung / Cleanzone Award: honouring the winners

On 18 and 19 November 2020, the digital networking event Cleanzone Digital Edition brought together cleanroom experts from all over the world. Solutions for combating the COVID-19 pandemic were a hot topic, as were new approaches to the construction of cleanrooms for medical and microtechnology applications. All participants and everyone else who is interested can continue to use the platform until 18 December to make contacts and view the recorded content.

What can we learn from the field of cleanroom technology regarding the ongoing pandemic? Experts got together to discuss this issue, which is important to society as a whole, and shared their knowledge of air purifiers, airlocks and proper cleanroom behaviour and processes. Their conclusion: The cleanroom industry possesses the know-how and expertise to advise governments and society alike. This issue was also reflected in the products and services on offer from exhibitors at Cleanzone Digital Edition, including Ortner Reinraumtechnik, Mann + Hummel and Siemens.

The presentations given by David Lindholm from KeyPlants and Martin Birch from G-CON were greeted with particular interest by the participants at Cleanzone Digital Edition. Both keynote speeches presented new approaches for industrial construction using prefabricated and tested modules that make it possible to build new facilities quickly – something that is especially important for the production of medications and vaccines. The industry is looking ahead to the future, to ensure that they are also well equipped for the time after the coronavirus. Here, experts explored new possibilities for using automation to increase production reliability and safety. Investments in the battery technology that are so important to the energy transition and the requirements for cleanroom production that these entail were also among the highlights at Cleanzone Digital Edition.

Business booster: Being recognised for the Cleanzone Award 2020

Never before have so many companies submitted their innovations for consideration for the Cleanzone Award, and never before have so many products been in the running for this coveted honour: Seven nominees managed to impress the panel with extraordinary approaches that break new ground in terms of sustainability and energy efficiency – or even enjoyment, as with a cleanroom game. The winners – who won the vote by a considerable margin – were Textilforschungsinstitut Thüringen-Vogtland e.V. and Ortner Reinraumtechnik. Their innovation: a sustainable coating for textile surfaces that photodynamically inactivates micro-organisms.

Streams + Sessions + Content + Networking = Success

Be it as visitors, exhibitors or speakers – feedback on the digital edition of Cleanzone has been positive from everyone involved. Kerstin Horaczek, Group Show Director Technology at Messe Frankfurt, was delighted with Cleanzone Digital Edition: “In September it became clear to us that any international dialogue this year would have to take place digitally, and we have been putting all our efforts since then into creating an effective networking platform. Naturally we were very much looking forward to seeing how the industry would react to our digital format, so we are particularly delighted by the positive reception, the high visitor quality, and the large numbers of business contacts that were made. ‘Digital natives’ – tomorrow's specialists in the cleanroom industry – were particularly pleased with the event.”

Cleanzone’s partners, including the German Cleanroom Institute (DRRI) and the International Confederation of Contamination Control Societies (ICCCS), were also involved in putting together the Cleanzone Digital Edition programme. The platform also hosted the presentation of an EU-supported programme for measuring airborne chemical contamination.

And the networking continues: All Cleanzone Digital Edition participants can continue to make use of the platform until 18 December 2020. Here, everyone who is interested can continue to view recorded content and network with business partners. Anyone who was unable to take part in Cleanzone Digital Edition before now can still obtain a ticket free of charge.

Facts and figures: All the key facts and figures for Cleanzone Digital Edition:

- Over 1,500 viewers followed the live streams
- Participants from 46 countries
- International component of visitors: approx. 50 percent
- Approx. 3,000 recommendations – 80 percent of which resulted in mutual interest
- Approx. 40 hours of compelling content (available on demand until 18 December)

The next Cleanzone will take place on 24 and 25 November 2021 in Hall 1.2 on the Frankfurt exhibition grounds.