Industry News

SAFC Hitech, a member of the Sigma-Aldrich Group, opened its $9 million state-of-the-art cleanroom in Sheboygan Falls, Wis., on April 29, 2008. The 5,000-sf facility, comprised of an ISO Class 4 cleanroom, a distillation suite, and office space, provides in-house trace metals analysis and the capability to clean and fill containers in a tightly-controlled environment.

Construction began on the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) in Cadarache, France, in spring of 2008. The $16.7 billion project aims to enable the fusion of hydrogen isotopes to create helium, releasing vast amounts of energy. Housing scientists, engineers, and administrators from the European Union, the United States, China, India, Japan, Russia, and South Korea, the fusion reactor is expected to reach completion within ten years.

The University of Pittsburgh approved $120 million in capital projects in April of 2008. A $64 million, 27,000-sf mezzanine level will be built in Benedum Hall at the Swanson School of Engineering housing classrooms, labs, and upgraded HVAC systems. A $21 million project will add a 38,000-sf wing to the Falk Laboratory School and renovate 26,000-sf in the existing Falk facility.

Northwestern University has selected Flad Architects to design two new additions to the 750,000-sf Technological Institute in Evanston, Ill. A 54,000-gsf, five-story life sciences engineering addition will house the Integrated Molecular Structure Education and Research Center, electrical engineering teaching labs, core labs, and researcher offices. A 20,000-gsf, three-story addition will include an interdisciplinary cleanroom, an atrium, offices, dry labs, and flexible laboratory space.

Terra Universal’s BioSafe™ Pass-Through Chambers meet requirements for clean, aseptic processing in biotech, pharmaceutical, medical device, and other critical applications. These 304/316 electro-polished stainless steel pass-throughs feature a seamless design with coved corners and ultra-smooth surfaces that eliminates cracks, corners and other contaminant traps, making them easy to clean and sterilize. No-lip edges eliminate clearance obstructions for easy material transfer into and out of a bio-cleanroom.