30 square meters that save lives

UKT Requalification of Stem Cell Laboratory, Copyright CAT Group

UKT Requalification of the Stem Cell Laboratory, Copyright CAT Group

In the cleanroom industry, we often deal with products and procedures that can save people's lives. However, hardly anywhere is this as palpable as in the Joint Stem Cell and Immunology Laboratory of the University Hospital Tübingen. The stem cell preparations processed here for cellular immunotherapy not only serve patients locally but also clinics around the world. Twice a year, we as CAT Group are responsible for requalifying the GMP areas within the stem cell and immunology lab.

Although the cleanroom areas of classes A, B, and C "only" cover about 30 square meters, requalification measurement procedures take between two and three days. This is due to the scope of individual parameters that must be measured in such a sensitive area – including filter leak and seal tests, recovery time, air volume flow, differential pressure, air cleanliness class, as well as microbiological measurements and investigations.

The Joint Stem Cell and Immunology Laboratory of the University Hospital Tübingen is equipped with state-of-the-art technology. A variety of highly specialized high-tech devices (for example, several CliniMACS Prodigy units for semi-automated cell processing) enable patient-specific preparation and cultivation of cells. If necessary, the cell preparations can be cryopreserved, meaning they are frozen for later use.