Prevention instead of damage control

Discussions with manufacturers and equipment suppliers show a surprisingly consistent picture: simulations are rarely used in the early project phases – often only when unexpected flow phenomena, particle backflows, or dead zones occur during operation. In such cases, causes must be identified retroactively and sometimes corrected at high cost. Merkle CAE Solutions, specialized in numerical simulation calculations, is often only consulted after problems have already arisen. Many of these challenges could be avoided in advance through digital analyses.

On average, a CFD simulation costs about one to two percent of a cleanroom's construction costs. For a project volume of one million euros, this corresponds to roughly 5,000 to 20,000 euros – a sum that is relatively small compared to potential follow-up costs. The simulation enables proactive assessment of airflow, visualization of particle movements, and analysis of temperature fields. Dead zones, undesired vortices, or critical particle concentrations can thus be identified before construction begins. This provides crucial planning security for operators of sensitive production facilities, such as in optics, medical technology, or pharmaceuticals.

Flow processes in cleanrooms are sensitive to even the smallest changes in geometry, equipment, and operating parameters. Experience alone is often insufficient to reliably predict complex interactions. Here, simulation serves as an objective basis to design air outlets, filter positions, or machine arrangements so that the specified cleanliness classes are maintained consistently. Poor planning can cause significant economic damage – for example, if a customer refuses to commission the facility because particle deposits impair product quality.

"With multiphysics simulations, we can now already simulate the cleanrooms, including the planned production and work environment. This way, we know not only if the cleanroom itself works but also if the planned production can run disturbance-, germ-, and particle-free," says Dipl.-Ing. (TU) Stefan Merkle, Managing Partner of Merkle CAE Solutions GmbH.

Merkle CAE Solutions therefore understands CFD analysis not as an additional element but as an integral part of proactive cleanroom planning. It helps to minimize risks, avoid rework, and ensure the functionality of highly sensitive production environments. For builders, this means that relatively low planning effort protects against costly and time-consuming corrections during ongoing operation.