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Useful Lab Equipment
One of the most useful items of lab equipment, a chemical fume hood helps protect against hazardous fumes, vapors and particles. From high school classes to large corporate research facilities, this expensive equipment offers great utility.
Clean rooms use chemical fume hoods and biological safety cabinets to maintain safety standards for laboratory environments. These systems are often part of the overall HVAC system located within the clean room environment. Although known to be very effective, fume hoods and safety cabinets can be costly for installation and maintenance. A ductless laminar air flow hood provides an economical alternative to the hoods and cabinets designed with costly exhaust systems.
Architects engineers and chefs are well aware of exhaust hoods required for stoves in residential kitchens as well as exhaust and sprinkler hoods required for commercial kitchens. These hoods have the ability to exhaust suck in unwanted smoke from cooking appliances and exhaust it to the outside air.
As a laboratory professional, your mind is usually preoccupied with calculations, formulations and speculation, but when it comes to buying laboratory equipment, it’s perfectly okay for you to admit to entering uncharted waters. But since your daily operations depend upon acquiring the work station that suits your unique needs and tasks, it’s incumbent upon you to ask the right questions while shopping so the outcome is as successful as your most daunting scientific challenge.
What do you do?
The devil is in the details, so coming up with a succinct answer to what first appears to be a simple question requires specificity. List all of the tasks that you perform each day to get started, and don’t forget the tasks undertaken by lab associates who may use your workstation from time to time. Now, match those tasks with features currently installed on your existing lab bench and add features you wish you had to make your job easier and more efficient. Examples of considerations are: storage requirements, ergonomics, lab bench size and height, and importantly, proper work surface materials, because solids and liquids you may handle may call specifically for epoxy resin or stainless steel if they’re to hold up over the long haul.
Does size matter?
You’re in luck. Today’s work station can leave as large or as small a footprint as you need to accomplish your most daunting tasks because you live in a modular age and just about every set-up under the sun can be configured to meet space parameters. A schematic of your lab’s layout gets the process in motion. If you’re not skilled at ascertaining spacing parameters, ask someone who is adroit at measuring area precisely so you wind up with exact measurements indicating left-to-right width and front-to-back depth. Explain to whomever plots the area how much work surface is required to host vertical accessory systems and equipment and if any of that equipment is unusually heavy, make mention of that so you don’t wind up with weight lode construction issues.
Which bench supports your typical workflow?
Does your workflow resemble a Detroit assembly line where tasks are moved along in linear fashion or does your system require a back-to-back, signature T, U, X or Y layout plan to meet your needs? Given many choices and the popularity of modular design, you no longer have to settle for “one-size-fits-all” lab furniture that doesn’t perfectly suit your needs. Add ergonomic efficiency to your list of workflow requirements so lab techs don’t end their days suffering from the stress and strain of working at a station that is too high or too low. Experts agree that a 30.5-inch work bench height accommodates between 99.5-percent and 99.9-percent of men and women. If your unique tasks require surface height adjustments, you may wish to place a crank- or motor-driven adjustable height system atop your list of features you can’t do without.
What are your lighting and wiring needs?
Perhaps your lab furniture setup requires a specific style, height or type of lighting to accomplish tasks. It makes no sense to install banks of overhead lights that drive a power bill through the roof when individually lit stations make more sense. Further, today’s lighting market offers products that are designed to suit benches requiring unique illumination requirements. For example, your lab may need to compensate for too much or too little natural light–or you might need fixtures that are fitted with glare and light-reduction filters. On a complementary topic, critical decisions must be made about power outlets, cable and cord management, ground fault circuit interrupters, hard wired data ports plus interfacing links between work stations so monitors or laptops are an integral part of the overall lab bench design configuration.
How important is storage?
Your mother wanted you to put things back when you were finished with them and you have probably come to appreciate that lesson—particularly if you have been forced in the past to deal with lab furniture that was counter-intuitive to tasks you performed regularly. What saved you? Storage. But every laboratory’s storage needs are unique, which is why a thorough inventory of items you keep on hand is important–so you don’t choose drawers, cabinets and shelves that are incompatible with the shapes, sizes, weights and number of items and supplies that require quick retrieval. Why is this so important? Imagine discovering, after the fact, that implements or tools you use for everyday tasks are too long to fit into standard-size drawers you ordered and that you’re stuck with that bad decision. Proper storage is so important to efficient laboratory operations, you may wonder how you survived without it once your lab is revamped!
Installation of a flow hood in your workshop is a safety measure that must be taken by all business owners. You may work in a small workshop that attaches to your home, or you may manage a large facility. Every building that sees industrial work every day must have laminar flow hoods in every room. The hoods you install will help you remove dirty air from the space, and the hoods help protect the lungs of you and your employees. Installation protocols are different for every building, but a simple plan will help you complete an installation that makes sense for your business.
#1: Where Do The Hoods Go?
Flow hoods must be installed directly over workstations in your building. Your home workshop may feature a flow bench that allows you to remove dirty air from the room as you work, and the hood is designed as part of the bench. A larger workshop may have hoods over every table, and a massive factory may have several hoods hanging from the ceiling. You must decide how to install your hoods based on the size of your building.
#2: How Do The Hoods Work?
The hoods use fans that suck air out of the room into an attached hose or pipe. The hose or pipe may go to a duct that leads outside, or the air may be sent to an incinerator that burns off any fumes that are flammable. You must attach your hoods to pipes that take the air away from your workers, and there may be a building code in your area that addresses such installations. Ensure that you have installed each hose or pipe correctly once the hoods are installed.
#3: Power Sources
The power source for your hood must be the wiring in your building. You tap into the electrical outlets for each room, and you may place the control panel where the outlet once stood. Your hoods will turn on and off using a simple switch, but you are not plugging in a socket. The hoods work best when they are hard-wired into your building’s electrical circuitry.
The power switch comes with a knob that allows you to control the speed of the fan. Every fan must be set to accommodate the amount of gas in the room, and your employees may turn up the fan at any time. Combining the hood with a gas sensor will help your employees understand what setting to use, and your building will be much safer as a result.
#4: How Long Do The Hoods Last?
A laminar flow hood will last for years on end when it is cleaned properly. You must hire a local service to clean your hoods once or twice a year. A complete cleaning and inspection will reveal any problems with the hood, and the technician can repair those problems during the visit. Dirty hoods will allow debris to get back into each room, and flammable gases or debris may ignite inside the hoods. You may keep your hoods for decades, but the hoods must be perfectly clean all the time.
A hood or flow bench helps everyone in a workshop remain safe during production. Industrial materials and tools create gases and debris that must be pulled out of the room, and your hoods will keep the air clean inside the space. Your employees are counting on the hoods to keep the air clean, and you must keep the hoods in good condition for the safety of your staff. A proper workshop or factory is not truly safe until every workstation is covered by a hood fan.
Heavy duty industrial workstations for your employees must include several parts if everyone in the building is to work efficiently during the day. You must include a cart, work bench and storage area for every employee, and there are supplies that may be combined to create the perfect workstation. You may run a small factory with just a few employees, but you need to give every employee the best equipment possible. This article explains how heavy duty work equipment will make your employees more productive.
#1: Provide Everyone With A Work Bench
A heavy duty work bench is absolutely necessary if you want your employees to be productive. Everyone must trust the tools they are expected to work with, and only heavy duty benches are useful to your employees. Your employees must feel that the bench will stand up to constant punishment, and the bench must be balanced properly. You cannot keep your employees safe with benches that will tip over at the first hint of a strong blow.
A heavy duty work bench must have storage space under the tabletop, and the storage space must be large enough for everything your employees are expected to use every year. The materials you give your employees may be stored under the bench, and the materials are easy to access in the future. The storage under the benches will free up space in other parts of the building, and workers rarely get up to look for something they need.
#2: Why Is A Heavy Duty Cart Necessary?
A heavy utility cart may be attached to any workbench, and you will improve the function of the bench with e cart. Employees who are expected to move their creations to other parts of the building may do so easily, and employees who must move around the building all day can detach their cart for easy movement.
A heavy duty utility cart can be moved anywhere in your facility at any time, and the cart itself will support a massive amount of weight. Your employees may bring heavy tools back to their workstations using these carts, or you large projects can be moved away from their workstations. Attaching a heavy duty utility cart to every workstation makes everyone’s job easier.
#3: Can Your Employees Do Work On A Utility Cart?
The heavy duty cart you provide to every employee can be used for small work projects in the building. An itinerant employee who moves around the building all day can get work done without sitting down, and work does not stop for a small job. The utility cart itself holds all the tools that are needed, the materials that are needed and provides a work space. Asking your employees to move around the building is wise, but no work will get done without a strong utility cart.
#4: Make Long Term Investments In Equipment
You purchase tools for your employees hoping that each tool will last a long time, and you must purchase work spaces in the same manner. A quality work space will last a long time, and you will not spend extra money on new work benches. Just one heavy duty bench or cart will see many employees out to retirement, and other benches will last longer than you do as a manager or owner.
The work tools and furniture you purchase for your facility must be as durable as possible. People work spaces are necessary for employees who are expected to work with tough materials every day, and you must provide the strongest possible work furniture. Employees who trust in their tools and furniture turn out great work, enjoy coming to work and never lack trust in your mission.
A heavy duty cart will help itinerant workers in your factories get their work done, and a heavy duty work bench will assist workers who must adjust items produced in your plant on a daily basis. The setup for every work area is different, but you can make inroads with your employees by offering them the right work furniture.
#1: How Do Carts Help You?
A heavy duty utility cart helps itinerant workers in your office move their equipment from one station to another easily. The heavy equipment that is used in most factories today cannot be carried by hand, but the carts used in each plant will help get the job done faster. Wheeled carts are easier to push, and they may be pulled onto elevators throughout the building easily.
Employees must take equipment to other locations may use the carts to load equipment into their vehicles, and the carts will fold up for use at another location. Heavy duty utility carts help the few workers your company has who do specialized jobs, and their equipment is kept much safer on carts that prevent falls and breakage during the day.
#2: What Style Cart Do You Need?
The carts you use must be made in the style that is most beneficial for your business. There are carts made for use around the office only. Each cart has a flat top, and there is a storage area underneath the top. You may push the cart around the office quickly to hand out mail or other items. Heavier carts have bigger wheels, and the equipment may be strapped down to the cart.
Larger carts use baskets that hold your equipment safely, and you may attach support items for each piece of equipment to the cart. Items that use industrial gases may be strapped to the cart, and the cart becomes the home of the device it carries. A heavy duty utility cart will protect your expensive equipment while it is in use.
#3: Workbenches
A heavy duty work bench must be set up in every corner of a factory for workers to use at their discretion. Work benches allow for the bending and shaping of items that must be used in the manufacturing process, and each workbench should be made of a heavy grade steel. Heavy benches should be strong enough to take the constant hammering and damage that is required to shape products in your factories. Workers must have full confidence that the benches will hold up to the level of work done every day, and the benches must become mainstays on the factory floor.
#4: Shopping Wisely
Shopping for heavy duty carts and benches is a lengthy process. You will find many different items for sale that you might choose, but only the strongest items should find their way to your factory floor. Heavy steel must be the main ingredient in each item you purchase, and the utility carts must come with large wheels that make steering simple. You will protect your equipment and products with better benches and carts.
Labs, factories and plants require basic building materials that will help your employees get the job done every day. You send your employees onto the work floor every day with high expectations, but your employees also have high expectations of the equipment that they use too. You may improve the expectations of all your employees when you purchase a heavy duty cart or bench for their use. These items will become permanent fixtures on the shop floor, and employees will become accustomed to the reliability each piece of equipment provides.
Laboratory exhaust fume hoods are necessary in all laboratories regardless of the experiments that are being conducted. Every person working in the lab must know they are safe from toxic fumes that may be created during an experiment, and the fume hoods must have a powerful fan that will clear the room in a matter of moments. A fume hood must be installed by a professional, and only special chemical fume hoods can be used in laboratories.
#1: Use The Right Hood
A chemical fume hood is completely different from the hood found in a kitchen, and you must request the right sort of hood before you continue with your installation. A professional installer can help you choose the right hood for your lab, and you must ask the installer where the hood should be placed.
The hood will be attached to a special conduit that leads the gases out of the building, or the hood may be attached to an incinerator that burns off dangerous gases. Special hoods are designed for use with incinerators, and your installer must attach the hood to the incinerator properly. Your lab cannot fill with toxic gases if the hood is in operation, and you can safely dispose of the gases.
#2: Remote Operation
The switch for the hood must be located in the lab, but there must be a separate hood located outside the lab for use by safety personnel. People in the lab may be overcome the fumes, but the hood can be turned on from a remote location. The panel inside the room helps lab workers choose the speed of the fan, the force of the fan and how open the duct is. A small amount of fumes may be disposed of using the lowest settings on the hood, but toxic gases that have built up must be eliminated using the very highest settings on the hood.
#3: How Do You Make Room For The Hood?
The hood you use in your lab must have its own space in the ceiling, and the hood must sit over the most volatile work area in the lab. Perform your most dangerous experiments directly under the hood, and ask your installer if the place where you keep those experiments is a good place for the hood. A wise installer will point you to the right location for the hood, and you may adjust the layout of your lab space accordingly.
#4: How Long Must They Last?
A chemical fume hood will last a very long time if it is cleaned and serviced properly. Every hood must be cleaned properly, and the services must be done on your fume hood every few months. The cleaning for the hood will include a complete adjustment, and there must be a report on the status of the hood. Every person who uses the hoods must have a record of the cleanings, and you should shut down experiments in the lab if the hood is every found to be lacking.
You can keep your laboratory much safer than normal with the use of just one hood, but every sensitive experiment location must have its own hood. The hoods for the lab must be purchased and installed from the same location, and you will benefit from service done by the same technician who did the initial installation. The lab cannot be completely safe without special hoods to pull out toxic gases, and you must consider how your staff will use the hoods when you are in an emergency situation. Proper procedures and equipment will help you run your lab safely and cleanly.
Do you have an application such as inspection of parts or assembly of optics that calls for a clean work environment free from airborne particulate matter? Laminar flow workstations are commonly used for Class 100 (ISO 5) applications that need a level of cleanliness corresponding to less than 100 particles of diameter greater than 0.5 micrometers per cubic foot of air. This type of clean environment is also ideal for the medical, pharmaceutical, electronics, food and industrial sectors for sterile manipulations, assembly of miniature mechanisms, production of optical components.
Laminar flow workstations provide a source of clean filtered air that flows smoothly over the work area and then out, keeping the working area at the rated cleanliness level. These workstations come in a range of sizes from 24″ wide and 24″ high to as much as 96″ wide by 37″ high, and can be moved through standard-width doorways. The workstations will have:
The working area is enclosed at the sides to ensure guided airflow and to prevent the possibility of contaminating particles mixing in from the outside. The low blower speed prolongs the fan’s lifetime and also provides a quieter environment for the operator, with noise levels around 65 DBA. Electrical outlets, cable trays and tool drawers are integrated into a complete workstation for a broad spectrum of applications.
These are the basic types of laminar airflow workstations for clean environment applications.
In a horizontal flow bench, the room air is pulled in from an opening on top of the laminar flow hood or below the work area platform and then prefiltered electrostatically. The air then moves to the rear of the bench and exits through HEPA filters that span the back of the workstation into the working area, after which the ultra-clean Class 100 air exits towards the front of the workstation, and past the operator. The laminar air flow is monitored, and any filter obstruction is reported to the operator. This horizontal flow bench design is intended for product protection.
Such a flow hood could also make an excellent tissue culture hood. Other clean bench applications could be for:
A vertical flow bench design also has the room air pulled in from the top of the laminar flow hood where it is prefiltered electrostatically. In this case, the air then is pulled below through HEPA filters and flowed downward onto the working surface, exiting past the operator at the front. The intended use for this design is in applications that require clean environments and pose no hazard to the operator.
Some laminar flow workstations have specialized enclosures that reduce the risk of sample contamination while performing polymerase chain reaction experiments. The constant positive pressure HEPA filtered air prevents airborne contaminants from entering into the work zone. The workstations are equipped with a built-in shortwave UV lamp to effectively decontaminate the work area between amplifications. Safety interlocks prevent operators from being exposed to UV radiation. However, keep in mind that these are not biological safety cabinets. They are designed to provide process protection only from potential airborne contaminants found in the laboratory space.
You may have already heard a lot of good things about RDM and what we have to offer. And honestly, we are quite proud of what people are saying about us…
After all, not every industrial or lab furniture manufacturer out there is given the same accolades or accomplishments that our loyal clients have showered us with.
But come to think of it—what specific aspects makes RDM the real deal?
To answer: It’s because we are able to bring our current and future clients quality, durability and cost-efficiency.
Interested?
Let’s expound:
Durability
When it comes to durable furniture pieces—we are at the top of our game.
Our industrial and lab furniture are made of high-grade, high quality industrial materials, ranging from stainless steel, seasoned wood, and many other essentials. Moreover, we always make it a point that each part of our furniture pieces are fully welded, attached or connected together, to ensure greater durability and strength.
Do you need heavy duty carts? How about work tables for heavy duty applications? We have them all.
Quality
Through our over 37 years experience in the furniture industry, we have become even more versed with regards the ins and outs of manufacturing high quality lab and industrial furniture.
Our manufacturing procedures are designed to bring the utmost efficiency and usability. We have always made sure that our products undergo rigid and strict standards, in order to ensure that our customers get the highest quality they deserve. After all, you deserve nothing less.
Do you want custom furniture for your special needs? Do you want adjustable tables that will fit your specific height requirements? We’ll be more than glad to provide them for you.
Cost Efficiency
In light of our experience in the field—plus the durability and quality of our products—some people presume that our furniture prices and rates are over the roof.
In reality, that’s not the case…
Our aim has been always about providing people real furniture solutions—at reasonable rates. Accordingly, we take pride in putting our customers first before anything else. So, if you do business with us, you can be sure that you’ll be getting your money’s worth. You can rest assured of that.
So, do you need high quality and affordable lab and industrial furniture pieces? Just give us a call. We’ll be more than glad to help.