Cleanroom blog on particle-free conditions

Minienvironment as local purity solution

Written by Markus Werther | 17.2.2025

Large, high-quality cleanrooms are often planned to create permanently clean production conditions. The purchase of a cleanroom generates considerable costs. Often a cleanroom is not necessary at all process points. With minienvironment technology as a sub-sector of cleanroom technology, more and more expensive, large cleanrooms are being replaced by small, localised units (minienvironments).

What is a minienvironment?

A minienvironment is a separate cleanroom area in which different environmental conditions exist. The environmental conditions (e.g. air cleanliness class, temperature) can be precisely defined for the process area and thus fulfil the conditions required for a specific work step. The physical separation makes it possible to achieve the required defined conditions more efficiently and maintain them at a constant level.

 

What are the advantages of minienvironments?

A minienvironment is a localised, cost-effective process solution for cleanroom conditions that can be adapted to any process.

Customised solutions tailored to the requirements of different industries offer a number of advantages:

 

Minienvironments are available in two forms:

  • Adapted minienvironments: Enclosures are built ‘around a machine’ and are primarily used to protect against coarse soiling.
  • Integrated minienvironments: an inseparable part of the machine that is fully integrated into the process. A major advantage of these minienvironments is that the area to be kept clean ‘moves’ with the machine when its location changes.

 

Which is the best solution?

Which minienvironment is suitable for which process depends on many factors. Which process (step) requires special protection? Which environmental factors have a negative effect on it? How much space is available? Which materials need to be used? Which air purity class prevails in the surrounding area?

These and other questions must be clarified before a concept for a minienvironment can be drawn up. We offer you solutions for individual workstations as well as for enclosures for individual machines and systems. Please feel free to contact us without obligation.