Open and shut case

Sara / LBS claims to have overcome the historical problem of industrial doors with no specific certifications for cleanroom environments, by launching the Sara Sprint Cleanroom Door - the first door, it says, to be tested by the Fraunhofer Institute for cleanroom suitability, and certified to EN ISO 14644-1 Class 5.

Maintaining regulation

Ed Wilks, operations manager for Sara / LBS, commented: “An ISO Class 5 cleanroom has at most 105 = 100,000 particles per m³; the Sara Sprint Cleanroom is able to consistently maintain this level of regulation in a normally functioning cleanroom. It is the only door on the market today that is designed specifically for cleanroom use with an internationally recognised certification.”

In common with the rest of the Sprint range from Sara, the company says the Cleanroom Door is capable of high opening and closing speeds, maximum speeds of up to 2 m/s are possible; this ensures that air exchange and particle emission is kept to a minimum when doors are in operation. According to Sara, the high speed is made possible by the inclusion of its MCC Vector Control system that can deliver a range of speeds extremely smoothly as well as offering a variety of options for connecting control safety devices.

Easy to clean

Motor and barrel cover, door frame and bottom profile are all constructed from stainless steel, the smooth surface is easy to clean and avoids the accumulation of particle deposits. The curtain uses PVC with fabric reinforcement strips; the strips are red or blue as standard but a wide variety of RAL colours are available as an option.

To ensure that high air ingress protection is achieved, gaps between the curtain and side columns are kept to a minimum and all components are well sealed, including the cable guide. The door is suitable for use with rooms with a pressure difference of up to 50 Pa.

The control panel is integrated into the side column, however a non-contact operator panel is also available for fast, hygienic opening. The option of including a patented non-contact safety beam further reduces the risk of touch contamination while vastly reducing the risks to personnel and equipment as the beam recognises when an object is obstructing the door and prevents it from closing.

Variety of application uses

Sara can supply the cleanroom certified doors with a number of options and variations to suit the customer. The geared brake motor that drives the door can be fitted on either the right or left hand side, a battery backup is also available to ensure the door still works in the event of a power failure. Door dimensions can be anywhere between 1000/3500 mm wide by 1000/3500 mm high; specially designed, narrow side frames allow doors to be installed in confined areas.

Ed Wilks said: “The Sara Cleanroom Door is suitable for a number of applications. There are a number of features as standard or optional that can ensure the door is perfect for your application. We have expert sales engineers available to provide advice on specific environmental requirements to ensure the correct specifications are met. This expert advice is available for all Sara customers from the initial quote, through to after sale support services.”