Designing Clean Zones

When designing a facility for pharmaceutical manufacturing, a foremost consideration is preventing product contamination. Eric Bohn has written an interesting article about good cleanroom design for Pharmaceutical Technology.

In relation to gowning, Bohn wires:

“Gowning has several functions. First and foremost, it is about protecting the product. The human body is continually generating particles through hair loss, shedding of dead skin, exhalant, and saliva. Of the potential sources of contamination in cleanrooms, people generate the most, and greater activity increases the release rate of these contaminates. Gowning (i.e., the covering of exposed hair, skin, and, in some cases, the nose and mouth) contains contaminates and protects the production area from the operators. When working in such areas, residue can collect on the exposed surfaces of the gowning materials. If personnel enter other areas, the residue can be transferred, thus causing cross contamination. Gowning procedures can keep these contaminates from passing between adjacent spaces by requiring disposal of used gowns and re-gowning before entering another production area.”

The article can be read in full here.

Posted by Tim Sandle