First engineering project in the semiconductor industry

First engineering project in the semiconductor industry

BE Semiconductor Industries N.V. (Besi), Austria

Many years of experience and tradition in designing and constructing clean rooms in the EU and around the world, has led to the fact that today, in addition to open projects in Belgium, the Netherlands, Russia and other countries, Termovent successfully implements, in cooperation with Exyte Central Europe GmbH from Stuttgart, a specific cleanroom project in Austria for Besi Austria GmbH, a firm that is part of the global company Besi based in the Netherlands.

Company Besi is engaged in a special line of business, development, production and sale of semiconductor assembly equipment for the global microelectronics industry and leading multinational microchip manufacturers.

It is about the implementation of clean rooms and accompanying systems, with complete management and monitoring through BMS/EMS systems, in the existing facility in order to develop a new generation of machines in the microelectronics industry.

Our scope of work included project documentation, production of Clean Rooms and Air Handling Units (AHU), delivery and installation of system equipment (HVAC, Black Utility, Electrical, BMS/EMS), commissioning and validation of the system, which is fully designed and performed according to ISO 14644-1 standard.

We successfully carried out the design of the system and the preparation of project documentation according to Austrian standards, during the 2nd and 3rd quarters of 2020, primarily due to dedicated teamwork, not only of mechanical engineers, but also electrical engineers, architects, technologists and other colleagues who gave a special stamp to the whole story.

Project in numbers:
Start of the project: 25/09/2020
Project completion: 25/01/2021
Project encompasses:
Installation of clean rooms,
Installation of HVAC, Black Utility, Electrical and BMS/EMS systems,
Commissioning,
System validation,
Project documentation of the performed state,
System management training (BMS/EMS, SCADA)
Classes: ISO4, ISO5, ISO7
Air handling units: FAHU, RAHU01, RAHU02, RAHU03
Air flow: 69000 m3/h
Surface area: Clean rooms: 235 m2, Technical rooms: 135 m2

In addition to achieving and maintaining comfort conditions in clean rooms, to achieve the appropriate classes and pressures in clean rooms, 4 air handling units are provided.
I would like to point out that our air handling units, with modern Ziehl Abegg fans and integrated frequency regulators, meet the strictest requirements in terms of noise and vibration, which is shown by the fact that they are positioned a few meters from clean space, where the noise criterion of maximum 65 dB is met, at system operation at 85%.
FAHU, with an air flow of 7000 m3/h, provides the necessary amount of fresh air for operators in clean rooms and the maintenance of room pressure in joint work with the local exhaust achieved by duct fans.
RAHU01, RAHU02 and RAHU03 provide air recirculation from clean rooms, with a total flow of 62000 m3/h. With this system with terminal ULPA/HEPA filtration, the Client received clean rooms that meet even the strictest requirements in terms of ISO4/ISO5 class and permitted particle concentration.

A water system with a temperature regime of 6/12 ̊C and an air-cooled chiller with 216 kW cooling capacity are provided for the supply of air handling units coolers. On the other hand, a water system with a temperature regime of 60/40 ̊C was chosen for the heaters, while the hot water source was provided by the Client.

What makes this project specific is the tight and limited space for installations. As a solution, a special “UFR gel ceiling”, a product of the company Exyte Central Europe from Germany, has been implemented in ISO4 clean rooms.
The ceiling is a “large plenum” above the entire surface of a clean room from which air is directly distributed through ULPA filtration into a clean space without standard distribution elements. In this way, large channel installations above ISO4 rooms were avoided, and the required classes were achieved. The tightness of the UFR ceiling is ensured by a special gel that does not let air into the rooms even at maximum loads and air pressures in the ceiling, i.e. the plenum.

The client received clean rooms with a fully controlled automated HVAC system that achieves and maintains air flow, pressure, temperature and humidity in clean rooms, while the monitoring system allows monitoring of temperature, pressure, relative humidity in ISO 4,5,7 clean rooms which is extremely important for the microelectronic process that takes place inside the room.

The biggest challenge before us was definitely the Covid-19 pandemic. It had an impact on the provision of work permits, the dynamics of performance during the “lockdown” in Austria, the delivery of equipment, etc…
With a systematic approach to the project, plan, organization and technical support of all colleagues, we successfully completed the project on time, and the client received clean rooms and supporting systems that meet the strictest requirements in terms of ISO standards, system management and monitoring of key parameters.

Termovent is recognizable in the world for the successful delivery of complete packages of clean rooms and systems that comply with ISO 14644-1 and GMP standards.

The complete package, which includes everything from system design, software development, production of modular clean rooms and air handling units to construction, BMS/EMS systems, validation documentation, is what sets us apart, along with the quality of the implemented systems, in the pharmaceutical and electronic industry around the world.

Predrag Nikolić,
Project Manager

Predrag Nikolić is an engineer and Project Manager in Termovent and he shared his experience from this project.