Link magazine: ProCleanroom responds to a great need for rapid expansion of cleanroom capacity

Source: LINK magazine

Would you like to get started quickly in an (extra) cleanroom? With today’s longer lead times, that can be quite a challenge. That is why they respond to this at full-service provider ProCleanroom in Valkenswaard. The portfolio has been expanded with the CleanShell: a compact, low-entry model, made of flexible material and therefore suitable for quick installation on site. See the solution as an innovation for cleanliness, they say at ProCleanroom. In any case, expectations are high. Also from the new, yet to be built building in Eersel, where the company will move in 2023.

Wide range

Ferguson is looking forward to the move and is happy to tell you more about it. But first something about the current market. With today’s supply chain, it is subject to quite a bit of dynamics, as they also notice at ProCleanroom. The company develops, produces and installs cleanrooms and flow cabinets, and like many organizations, it faces challenges in terms of availability of materials. So what to do if a customer wants to quickly scale up with one or more cleanrooms within a short period of time? According to Ferguson, it is more important than ever to anticipate this well. “And we do that with a wide range of products. As a result, we do not have to advise a company from one specific solution, but instead respond to customer needs. This way we can help a company with a solution that is still available relatively quickly.”

Fast (dis)assembly

This rapid scaling up also played a role at Faes, which already had a cleanroom installed by ProCleanroom in its own building in Reusel. Nevertheless, in addition to the modular hardwall version, this packaging producer still needed a second, flexible cleanroom solution. Faes is now the first customer to have the CleanShell: a cleanroom that, once built, looks like a tent, where the required airflow is generated by fan filter units containing H14 HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) filters. Installing the CleanShell can be done in half a day, says Ferguson, and dismantling is even faster. “That makes this cleanroom very flexible. And therefore attractive for companies that want and can get started with a low-threshold solution with a compact and pragmatic solution for a cleanroom, or only need one for short, service-oriented applications.’

New business premises in Eersel

‘A dynamic supply chain requires broad anticipation’

It suited them well at ProCleanroom that the neighbor’s building became vacant a while ago. Because it was becoming too cramped for everyone to stay in their own building in the meantime. So several employees are moving to the adjacent building. Although temporary, says director-owner Niels Ferguson, although he believes the expansion was badly needed. “We have achieved growth of 20 to 40 percent – per year for the past five years. To continue to facilitate that growth, we are having a new building built on the Meerheide III business park in Eersel. We will be moving in the first half of next year.”

‘We do not start from one specific solution, but respond to customer needs’

Take VDL-ETG in Almelo, for example, which quickly needed new cleanroom capacity for ASML-related processes. The company already had the necessary fixed cleanrooms, based on a panel system with complex air treatment. But was it necessary to do that again? The time was simply not enough for that. ‘So we came up with a different solution for VDL-ETG and there are now several large softwall cleanrooms in Almelo, which together cover more than 1,600 square meters. The cleanrooms fully meet the requirements for cleanliness and, thanks to the modular design, offer more flexibility than if VDL-ETG had opted for a fixed installation. If VDL ETG had opted for a permanent set-up for this surface area, according to Ferguson, the realization thereof would have taken at least six months. “Now this project was finished in ten to twelve weeks.”

modular sections

According to Ferguson, the investment in a CleanShell is about one and a half times lower than that in a modular softwall cleanroom with the same dimensions. And what about the delivery time? “The customer can then expect two to four weeks, depending on the configuration, size and numbers. We have carefully selected the materials used, so that the CleanShell meets the high requirements for cleanliness and fire safety. Customers can carry out their activities in it up to ISO class 6, making the solution suitable for ASML grade 4 and ASML grade 2 surface cleanliness processes.’ The CleanShell can be put together modularly and is therefore available in sizes from 10 to a maximum of about 50 square meters. “Of course, the customer can place multiple shells next to each other.”

Customer experience center

As a package, the CleanShell appears to be so compact that ProCleanroom will soon be able to offer it in its own webshop for accessories and consumables. But first the company will have to move to Eersel, where ProCleanroom will soon be much more spacious than it is now in Valkenswaard. A customer experience center will be built in the new building. That in addition to the workshop, the warehouse and last but not least the new workplaces, which Ferguson attaches great importance to. “People should be able to work comfortably with us. That may go without saying, but I think it’s really important. We want to be a good employer and also distinguish ourselves in that area and profile ourselves as such.’

Sustainable growth

So think of light, transparent office spaces. Spacious seating areas and all necessary facilities. In addition, the building will be gas-free, numerous solar panels will be installed on the roof and the large amount of glass and white wall panels will provide the same appearance as our own cleanroom solutions. Above all, the new building will be the place where ProCleanroom wants to continue to grow in the coming years, after a stay of more than seven years in Valkenswaard. According to Ferguson, the new location makes it possible to expand the team to 30 to 35 employees and to increase turnover towards 15 million euros. “We can make progress on every level.”