Choices are good; but when you are presented with too many options it is easy to get confused. The number of companies making autoclaves and sterilizers (and offering multiple options for each model) has increased dramatically over the past decade. Making a poorly informed or inappropriate choice can have a significant negative impact on the operating efficiency of any organization that relies on one or more of these machines.

The wide variety of available alternatives has grown exponentially due to the increase in general industry knowledge and improvements in sterilization technology. You should take a close look at your specific needs and relevant budget constraints before making a procurement decision since acquiring a sterilizer can be a significant investment. LTE Scientific offers some consumer guidance for autoclave purchases that may help in the customer’s decision making process.

A little free advice can be a great help in the effort to ensure the efficacy of such a valuable asset. After all, you want to make sure you have the right apparatus to meet all your needs. You also do not want to spend extra money on something that does much more than necessary. LTE Scientific identifies some issues that are sometimes not given as much weight as maybe they should be.

Due Considerations

The following are some important questions you need to ask yourself before buying:

• How will steam be generated? Is there already an on-site source or will it be created by the autoclave itself?
• Is cycle length and equipment down time important?
• What are the specific requirements for data traceability and cycle recordings? Will the computer management of this information need to be handled remotely? Storage and archives for temperature and pressure validation are usually necessary in one form or another at most laboratories and medical facilities.
• What kind of vacuum pump is necessary to meet your needs? Drying time and effectiveness of the flashing away of residual water can be dramatically affected by this.
• Do you need a ballast type system to help prevent breakage? Increasing pressure instead of vacuum can be very useful for certain applications involving sealed and unsealed media. In such cases equalizing pressure or sometimes even overpressure can prevent breakage or volume loss.
• How important are power consumption and water usage? Environmental concerns are on the rise. Recycling of water or steam can provide some reassurance that you are doing your part to aid conservation.

LTE Scientific can provide answers to many of these questions. Founded in 1947, this company has over 60 years of experience from which to draw its information. This large manufacturing and supply company has industrial customers throughout the pharmaceutical, biotech, food manufacture, agriculture, healthcare, veterinary, higher education, research testing, analytical laboratories, electronics, defense, and other technological sectors.

Some of their main products include:

• Laboratory Autoclaves (30 to 10,000 liters)
• Central Steam Sterilizers (330 to 10,000 liters)
• Dry Heat Sterilizers (60 to 1,000 liters)
• Ovens (60 to 1,000 liters)
• Incubators (60 to 1,000 liters)
• Cooled Incubators (70 to 410 liters)
• Freeze-Dryers (3 to 18kg ice capacity)
• Environmentally Controlled Rooms
• Solution and Blanket Warming Cabinets

Their recent innovative additions include the Touchclave-R autoclaves and QualicoolTM incubators. They continue to adapt to customer needs and incorporate the latest technologies.

A small UK company is going high tech with its very first original sterilizer design. The new Ascot autoclaves feature the CS1 programmable logic controller from Omron and the pneumatic valve island built by American manufacturer SMC. This will be the first use of such combined technology by a British company. These autoclaves are structured to meet important validation requirements and can be used in the life science and pharmaceutical markets as well as traditional hospital settings.

Ascot has spent over a decade re-engineering and refurbishing units built by other manufacturers so they have a very good idea of what works and what breaks down over time. They have taken these years of experience and translated them into a machine that incorporates an extensive wish list of their favorite features. The result is an autoclave designed with the ongoing needs of the customer in mind.

The company is serious about reducing wiring costs and complexity and has chosen the CS1 device to make their equipment as efficient as possible. They have been using controllers from Omron to bring older autoclaves back into service so they know the value of having a reliable supplier for these critical components. Ascot is depending heavily upon the name recognition of this top vendor in the electronics field to help market this product. Click on ascotautoclaves.com for more news on this relationship.

Omron bills itself as the supplier of a full 20% of the global demand for automation systems and related products. They have 60 locations in Europe alone and center some of their extensive R&D labs there. One of the main reasons Ascot chose to partner with this company on its new autoclave design is the practical and cost effective fieldbus system.

The top down management of the fieldbus starts with the person programming the machine. Ascot advertises that training takes just a quarter of an hour. That would definitely make the Omron touch screen NT31 one of the most user friendly and easy to understand interfaces on the market. The screen is linked to programmable controllers which translate communication from the user to the actual valve systems, sensors, and other parts distributed throughout the unit. Every cycle run on the machine is meticulously recorded on a flash drive for later review making it easy for labs to comply with validation standards.

Ascot’s Continued Expansion

SAL Pharma has been acquired by this vendor and adds a full range of autoclaves with a capacity of 200 liters and up to the current product line. Ascot also carries effluent sterilization vessels, flexible endoscope washers and steam generators. They continue to upgrade existing machines and provide ongoing maintenance and support on all their products. Technicians on staff can help clients with all required testing processes.

This corporation has also sought and received accreditation from SGS Yarsley for manufacturing medical devices under the 2A classification. This ensures that all CE marked units purchased through the company are safe to use for sterilizing equipment that will be used on human patients. SGS Yarsley has also audited Ascot’s quality management system and recognized that it meets their exacting standards throughout all aspects of the company’s operations.

Eagle MHC has a new product and it is making waves in the equipment handling sphere. If you are in the market for surgical case carts you can now choose an open wire design that will allow you to identify container contents at a glance. QuadTruss (a patented Eagle design) gives the shelving units added strength and a retaining edge helps keep your material in place. Since the multiple grooves on each cart post are only an inch apart you have a wide range of shelf placement options.

Stainless steel construction makes this model corrosion resistant and easy to clean. Each unit comes complete with non-marking polymer casters to protect your flooring and an easy to use brake system to keep your cart in place wherever you park it. Want tote bins? They are an available feature made of highly durable engineered polymer.

If your use of this equipment brings it into contact with liquids you can tilt the lowest shelf forward for easy drainage. The makers of this cart have also made a concerted effort to eliminate design features that allow for bacteria and other contaminants to collect in the inside corners and crevices of the unit. Finally, you can also custom order a cart to meet your specific industry needs – even models compatible with automatics lifts are available.

Many people are not aware that stainless steel is actually designed to “stain less” – not to be impervious to any and all rust spots. However, the company still offers a 15 year warranty against significant rust or staining (defined as covering more than 5 percent of the surface of the equipment). They also offer a lifetime warranty against corrosion on the stainless steel posts and rails of their LifeStor with MicroGard system. These warranties apply to both dry and cool storage uses.

Rack It, Stack It, Roll It

The MHC division of Eagle Group has a vast selection of racking systems for healthcare, laboratory and cleanroom environments. I counted over two dozen different applications for these industries on their website and that doesn’t even scratch the surface of all the models available for each application. Gowning racks, surgical carts, solid and perforated cleanroom table tops – the list goes on and on. This company is a full scope supplier for any storage, transportation, or workspace item that can be made of steel or polymer.

Headquartered in Delaware, Eagle Group has been around since 1947 and is continuing to grow. Their 10 point quality system may be one of the reasons why. The Eagle manufacturing process includes such quality control measures as:

• first-article inspection and testing - in-house, in real-time
• automation of key manufacturing functions for consistency (including use of the newest robotic technologies)
• custom crating and boxing of all equipment to minimize shipping damage

These products are also designed to meet demanding health codes and all outside components are quarantined and sample-inspected before being incorporated into the manufacturing process.

Sending equipment back to your main sterile services department is always the best way to ensure the highest level of sterilization possible. If you are working at a remote location and this is not an option you should familiarize yourself with the appropriate instructions and precautions for the safe use of benchtop sterilizers. These small units should never be used to process drapes, dressings, hollow instruments, or other porous items. Most models simply aren’t equipped for the job and can’t produce the necessary vacuum pressure to remove air from the load.

There are four steps involved in creating the best possible end user experience with a benchtop steam decontamination equipment.

First, you must determine which model is best suited to your environment and the articles you will be sterilizing. If your needs are simple you can opt for a very small unit that just runs one or two cycle types. For more complex jobs you will have to invest more in your equipment to get optimal results.

Second, you absolutely must have all staff properly trained to operate the machine. This requires actual technical personnel from the distributor coming on site to provide assistance. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t read the manual, though. You should familiarize yourself with all aspects of the equipment before attempting operation. Mistakes can damage the equipment, fail to properly sterilize contents, and even cause serious injury to employees. Sudden temperature fluctuations can stress glass items and cause them to shatter. Burns from steam can also occur if instructions are not followed. Remember that disinfecting items before they are placed in the unit is necessary since steam must have direct contact with the implements being cleaned in order to fully sterilize them.

Third, the equipment must be periodically validated. Your sterilizer will be thoroughly tested before leaving the factory to ensure that the rigorous industry standards are met. Instructions for ongoing test protocols are always provided with the machine and validation supplies can be purchased from many manufacturers. Verifying that a load is sterile is not done by inspecting the contents themselves. Rather, the assumption of sterilization is made if the items have been exposed to adequate conditions of temperature, pressure and time within the machine. Therefore the sterilizer must be monitored on a regular basis to make sure these conditions are being met.

Fourth, maintenance should always be provided by qualified repair technicians to ensure that your machine has been returned to factory specifications. Attempting to repair a sterilizer yourself or hiring an unauthorized company may void your warranty. You don’t have to wait until your equipment breaks down – have your machine inspected periodically to catch mechanical problems early on. The manufacturer of your sterilizer can give you an idea of which parts (such as valves) may wear out over time and need to be replaced.

Reminders And Safety Tips

• Do clean and dry all items before loading them into the unit
• Do NOT process porous materials in steam sterilizers
• Do keep good records of each cycle run as well as testing and maintenance
• Do validate you sterilizer’s performance regularly
• Do perform frequent safety checks