Connect Systems Netherlands opens new cleanroom

The installation of this new cleanroom will increase the company’s capabilities for the production of cables, cable-looms and mechatronic cabinets for the high-end European electronics market. “What we see today is that technology companies like Connect Systems can only maintain their position at the top of the European market by offering higher added value to their customers”, says Flor Peersman, Chief Operations Officer at Connect Systems International. “While, in the past, we could serve the market with the plain production of cables, PBA’s and modules, we now see that these activities move more and more to Eastern Europe and Asia. To stay at top level, we took the opportunity to transfer Connect Systems from a pure production company into a technology group that also offers production services. The installation of the new cleanroom is one step ahead on the technological ladder, and enables us to meet higher standards and to produce more demanding products in small -and mid-series.” The cleanroom in Rijen has a capacity of 216 m² (of which 180 m² production zone) and is classified under the cleanroom standard ISO 8 (less than 832.000 particles of 1µm / m³ air). “This may seem a lot,” tells Peter van de Moosdijk, production manager at Connect Systems Netherlands, “but in fact this is extremely clean. You should know that a person sheds 100.000 particles per minute while sitting quietly. A slowly moving person sheds 1 million particles per minute and this increases up to 5 million particles when walking around. And then we’re not even taking production-related influences such as machinery, packaging, … into account.” “Thanks to the great discipline of our employees we have recently measured values of less than 83.200 particles of 1µm per m³ air. This corresponds with the cleanroom standard ISO 7. Although we are today only classified under ISO 8, we can assure our customers that we are doing better than the requested standards.” Apart from the cleanroom in Rijen, the Connect Systems Group also disposes of a cleanroom for the assembly of PCB’s and modules in its factory in Poperinge, Belgium. The combination of the capabilities of these two cleanrooms offers customers a solution for the the assembly of their most demanding cables, PCB’s and mechatronic projects.