Beard Covers Boufannts Cleanroom Cleanroom Apparel Coveralls Frocks ISO 4 ISO 5 ISO 6 ISO 7 ISO 8 PPE

Cleanroom Apparel vs. PPE and Cleanroom Purity Ratings...What You Need to Know

Cleanroom apparel serves two functions. First, cleanroom apparel encapsulates the operator to prevent contaminants from breathing, hair, skin, undergarments, street clothing, and shoes from migrating into the cleanroom environment. 

Since NEBB estimates that 70% of contamination is generated by the operator, selecting the right apparel to meet your cleanroom and operator requirements – and then training your operators on the proper use – are the determining factors in maintaining cleanliness in your facility.

Second, cleanroom apparel helps protect the operator from hazardous materials used in the cleanroom. Many cleanrooms are engineered to minimize the operator’s contact with chemicals, but in the case where your operator has direct contact, the apparel needs to provide protection.

What’s the Difference Between Cleanroom Apparel and PPE?

Cleanroom apparel is a barrier to protect processes, equipment, and products from contamination by the wearer. On the other hand, personal protective equipment (PPE) provides a barrier to protect the wearer from chemical or biological hazards.

Cleanroom apparel is made with a range of clean, low-linting materials to minimize particles – that’s the main requirement. Some garments provide full body coverage and are typically worn over clothing or as a cleanroom suit.

Depending on your application, operators may need to wear apparel that provides full body coverage or a combination of items – face/beard cover, headcover, shoe cover, garment – to meet your facility’s cleanliness requirements.

While cleanroom apparel is made from similar materials as PPE, such as polypropylene or polyethylene, cleanroom apparel materials have additional treatments and stitching options to meet particle and extractable requirements for cleanliness.
Courtesy of Valutek

Cleanroom Purity Ratings

Cleanrooms are rated for purity according to guidelines established in Federal Standard 209D and ISO standard 14644. Air cleanliness is specified in terms of the number of foreign particles per cubic foot (or cubic liter) of air, relating different combinations of particle size and particle count. Lower classifications represent cleaner rooms (E.g.: Class 100 / ISO 5 is cleaner than Class 100,000 / ISO 8). How particles are counted depends on particle size: air with smaller particles can have higher particle counts and still meet the class designation.
 

  • Class 1 / ISO 3: only one particle per cubic foot – More Clean environment
  • Class 10 / ISO 4: 10 particles per cubic foot
  • Class 100 / ISO 5: 100 particles per cubic foot
  • Class 1,000 / ISO 6: 1,000 particles per cubic foot
  • Class 10,000 / ISO 7: 10,000 particles per cubic foot.
  • Class 100,000 / ISO 8: 100,000 particles per cubic foot – Less Clean environment

[particles measure 0.5 micron or less in diameter]
Courtesy of LM Air Technology

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