Esco (R) SMART Programme
Safety, Maintenance and
Regular Testing Programme
Esco Biotech Certification
Laminar
flow and biological safety cabinets achieve their performance specifications
by precision control of low airflow velocities in
fixed flow patterns, using delicate filtration systems. All this
means that the improper installation or maintenance of a laminar
flow or biological safety cabinet can lead to a severe degradation
in performance specifications. In the case of a biological safety
cabinet this also means a severe safety risk to the operator as
well as laboratory personnel in the surrounding area.
In order to maintain our standard
for quality, all Esco products are individually certified and tested
at our laboratory after production. They are thus typically designed
to exceed performance specifications on-site without any complex
testing or installation requirements as long as a power source is
available.However, given the precise nature in which these cabinets
achieve their performance specifications, on-site certification (ie.
testing using specialized instruments to verify performance) is always
desired as part of the installation process.
In addition, Esco recommends
( as do all industry standards / regulations) at least an annual
recertification ( during which the performace of the cabinet is checked
with specialized instruments) during which other secondary adjustments
(ie. to the cabinet's airflow syste, electronic airflow monitoring
systems, or filter replacement etc.) may also be carried out. Recertification
must also be carried out in other circumstances, for example: relocation
of cabinet, replacement of filters, cabinet alarms activated, or
if performance of the cabinet is suspected for any reason. Recertification
at shorter interval such as 6 months is also recommended for particularly
hazardous workloads in the case of biological safety cabinets.
As each cabinet's design is manufacturer
specific, it is advisable that only Esco or our authorised representative
(ie your local distributor) peform the installation and maintenance
certifications (or when not possible the independent certification
company must be guided properly by our technical data rather than
apply a generic set of techniques) This is important in order to
ensure that the results obtained on site correlate with the results
recorded at the factory when the unit was built, as well as results
obtained in the independent certification lab when our design was
validated - in other words, that the complete performance of your
cabinet is assured.
Please note naturally any adjustment
or modifications to our cabinets not in accordance with our technical
recommendations, will render any product warranties null and void.
Therefore - only allow your authorised Esco distributor / Esco Biotech
Certification to perform these adjustments/ tests where possible
and if you should engage an independent company ensure that they
follow the data provided in our service manuals. In addition, do
not allow any untrained personnel to make adjustments / perform the
certifications and if you must engage an independent service ALWAYS
validate their credentials.
In general,
certification whether for the initial installation (commissioning)
or regular checkups,
require a set of extremely sophisticated instrumentation as well
as proper training. Consequently all authorised Esco distributors
are encouraged to attend regular training seminars conducted by our
techinical team
and you as the customer should validate these credentials whenever
possible. However due to the high cost of the instrumentation required
not all our distributors are able to provide the full set of recommended
on-site certification services. In addition, in general in Asia there
is an OVERAL lack of independent certification companies who are
qualified and are able to certify our cabinets in the field.
Esco Biotech Certification was
created to address this demand and today we now offer the most complete
set of installation / maintenance / certification services in Asia
( Internantional service also available on request ) exclusively
for Esco biological safety and laminar flow cabinets. As a division
of Esco Biotech ( the manufacturing group specializing in the production
of clean air laboratory cabinets), we are proud of our credentials,
our personnel, and our instrumentation.
Feedback from Asian customers
indicate that the availability of services from Esco Biotech Certification
is often a significant factor in influencing their purchasing decision
to choose Esco cabinets. Other foreign manufacturers may be represented
in Asia by their distributors but no one can match the level of factory
direct service support available from Esco. Remember that the cost
of maintaining a complete set of certification instrumentation is
significant and few companies in general in Asia have the expertise
and the resources to do so.
These are the the advantages
and benefits of choosing Esco Biotech certification:
1. Probably
the largest and most comprehensive range of instrumentation available
from any certification company. The financial resources
of Esco Biotech , the manufacturing group allow us to maintain
one of the finest set of instruments. (within Esco Biotech the technical
/ quality control department at the factory already certifies a
tremendous
number of new units produced every year. Consequently also we have
an extensive relationship with instrument manufacturers since overall
we use a large quantity of their products.)
Instrumentation is useless unless a proper recalibration and maintenance
schedule is adhered to. Esco Biotech Certification maintains one
of the highest recalibration standards in the world. Our quality
system in this regard has been developed to exceed the requirements
of standards such as the IEST-RP-CC013-86-T. Our instruments are
regularly shipped back to manufacuters around the world for recalibration.
In addition, additional cost we always obtain "as-found" calibration
data on the instruments in order to ensure that the tests performed
with that instrument did give us reliable readings before recalibration.
2.
The only certification company in Asia focused solely on laminar
flow and biological safety cabinets. Most certification companies
will test any clean air device with a HEPA filter. Our focus allows
us to continuously refine our laminar flow and biological safety
cabinet certification techniques to a higher standard than others
in the industry.
3. Esco Biotech Certification
benefits from the more than 20 years expertise in clean air technology
from the manufacturing
group. In
fact, more than 20 years ago in 1978 Esco was the pioneer in clean
air technology in Southeast Asia.
4. Similarly ,since Esco Biotech
builds many cabinet versions each one complying with one of a few
specific international standards,
Esco Biotech Certification is qualified to perform certification
in accordance with any of the appropriate international standards.
For example, if you have choosen a cabinet that we have built to
comply with the European standards, we have engineers specializing
in European requirements that are able to perform on-site certification
to these same requirements, therefore obtaining the best overall
correleation of results for optimum cabinet performance. On the
other hand should you choose a local independent certification company
you cannot be assured that they understand European requirements
precisely and they may simply apply a generic set of test methods
which cannot assure you of proper cabinet performance.
5. Continual
investment in R&D as well as personnel training.
Through our affilitation with the R&D division of Esco Biotech,
the manufacturing group, Esco Biotech Certification is the only
certification company in Asia that processes a dedicated research
laboratory in
which we continuously research and improve our certification techniques.
Our engineers are also throughly trained and among the best in
the industry.
6. Consistent membership in /
sponsership of key international trade associations such as CETA
(Controlled Environment Testing Association), IEST (Institure of
Environmental Sciences and Technology) and others. The fact that
we sponsor key industry organisations means that you as our customer
can be assured that your business is helping to contribute to the
general well-being of the industry. In addition we have a staff officially
certified as a NSF accredited biosafety cabinet certifier. He had
been independently examined and accredited by the NSF for competency
in performing field certification to NSF 49.
7. Our quality system
is ISO 9001 certified. Not many (if any at all) certification companies
in Asia are qualified in this respect.
8. We know our own cabinets
better than any one in the field. Period.
General services available from
Esco Biotech Certification include :
A free pre-installation consultation
during which our technical engineer can advice you on cabinet site
requirements as well as optimum
placement of the cabinet in your laboratory for maximum performance,
exhaust airflow requirement etc.
Installation services including
setting up of cabinet on base stand in optimum position in labratory,
connecting to exhaust system when required, as well as a complete
certification (see below for complete certification services)
Recertification
services (see below for complete list of certification services)
Maintenance
services such as adjustment of cabinet airflow system, filter replacement,
decontamination with formaldehyde, airflow monitoring
system recalibration / adjustments etc.
Reminder service for annual
or biannual recertification
Service contracts and discounts
for large users
A competitive pricing system
which means you pay our travel expenses at cost (for example, travel
costs with Southeast
Asia for a 2 days/1
night trip can be as low as USD250), a fixed cabinet fee depending
on the services required, in addition there is a significant discount
if multiple cabinets are to be certified.
In particular Esco Biotech certification
offers the the following certification services.
