The pass-through box or cleanroom pass box is becoming increasingly popular. The "2024-2031 Global and Regional Clean Room Pass Box Industry Status and Prospects Professional Market Research Report Standard Version" suggests an increasing demand for cleanroom pass boxes. On top of this, it also suggests a notable growing demand for these cleanroom instruments in the coming years.
The report claims this is thanks to stricter cleanliness directives and the ever-evolving state of technology. Investing in these products is encouraged, especially for those working in sectors that employ cleanrooms. One can start by trying to understand this technology–to ask the question, what is the purpose of a pass box?
What is the Purpose of a Pass Box?
The purpose of a pass box is to transfer materials safely with minimal personnel needed. This is achieved through the use of interlocks, meaning only one door can be open at a time. This function, among others, is fundamental to the many advantages of investing in a pass-through box for cleanrooms across industries such as microbiology, pharmaceuticals, electronics, manufacturing, and much more.
Let's explore the many pass through box benefits, such as preventing contamination and ensuring safety, increasing productivity, and providing variety for different purposes.
Pass Through Box Benefits
Contamination and Safety
Single Door Operation
The single-door operation makes it difficult for possible contaminants to enter the cleanroom via equipment and materials.
Reduced Foot Traffic
Pass-through boxes also reduce the likelihood of contamination by reducing the frequency of personnel entering and exiting the cleanrooms. This minimises the possibility of contaminating materials, personnel, and equipment.
Fire-Rated Doors
A cleanroom pass box can also employ fire-rated doors to protect the cleanroom, equipment, materials, and personnel.
Productivity
No Need For An Air Shower
A cleanroom pass box eliminates the need for air showering. Doing so significantly increases the time personnel could spend on other related activities in the cleanroom.
Time-Saving
Materials and products can also automatically enter these spaces without requiring individuals to transport them, saving more time. With less possibility of contamination, there is less need for cleaning, which means more time can be spent doing the work that cleanrooms are designed for.
Automation Options
Programmable filtration, IoT integration, and sanitising modules can also be introduced to automate a cleanroom pass box.
Economical
Effective Storage
The required cleanroom space is reduced because materials don’t need to be stored inside it; instead, they can be stored outside. This lowers operational and acquisition costs.
Air Filtration Costs
Pass boxes also reduce the need to install complicated air filtration systems and airlocks– saving even more possible costs.
Variation
Pass boxes, which come in different sizes and designs, can be employed in various ways for multiple materials. Each pass-through box has many variations. However, the three main types of pass-through boxes are static, dynamic, and semi-active.
Types of Pass-Through Boxes
Static Pass Box
Various industries employ static pass boxes. They are only utilised to pass materials between cleanrooms that match cleanliness. Therefore, it is inadvisable to use them to transfer materials between cleanrooms that do not match in classification or ISO classes.
This cleanroom type focuses on non-sensitive materials and is designed for minimal foot traffic. Ventilation is not required. They are recommended for basic cleanroom practices, generally for cleanrooms up to ISO Class 7.
Static pass boxes are generally designed with stainless steel, including LED indicators and electromagnetic interlocking components, and are fitted with UV light.
We provide a VA1100 series Static Pass box at Vivid Air, which you can learn more about by following this link.
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Semi-Active Pass Boxes
Semi-active pass boxes can be used to transition materials between cleanrooms and non-validated areas. They can also be used for cleanrooms higher on the classification list.
These types of pass boxes contain a HEPA Filter that removes 99.97% of contaminants.
Dynamic Pass Box
Various industries employ dynamic pass boxes to move materials between controlled and uncontrolled environments. They are flexible and suited to sensitive environments and materials with complicated air-handling requirements. These pass boxes work similarly to laminar airflow units or airlocks to prevent contamination and guarantee airflow.
They are designed with stainless steel pressure gauges, HEPA filters, UV lighting, and suction and supply filters.
All of these pass boxes, with flat surface designs, make cleaning and maintenance easier and reduce dust accumulation by forming part of cleanroom wall systems.
Follow this link to learn more about our VA1100 series Dynamic Pass Box.
The above are just a small number of the multiple benefits of pass-through boxes, as well as types that, as is evident, can vastly improve cleanroom operations and safety.
Read Cleanroom Validations—Validation Technician and Training to learn more about cleanrooms and how validations can improve their functionality.