CIMScan has been used to monitor the environment in cleanrooms since 1995. In fact, a predecessor to the current system was installed to monitor the environment in the payload assembly building for the International Space Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Numerous pharmaceutical, flat panel display, and semiconductor manufacturers use CIMScan to monitor their cleanrooms all over the world.

MONITOR

The following are a few of the parameters that can be continuously monitored and recorded by a CIMScan Monitoring System:

• Temperature
• Humidity
• Differential Pressure
• Particle Counts
• Electrostatic Discharge (EDS)
• Door Interlocks
• Machine Cycles and Cycle Times
• Ultrapure Water Systems
• Chemical Feed Rates
• Levels in Tanks or Gas Cylinders

IMPORTANT STATISTICS

In addition to reporting the currently measured values at a user-defined rate, CIMScan’s remote data acquisition controllers (eLinks and Monitoring Stations) calculate and report the following hourly statistics:

• Average (arithmetic mean) calculated over the hour
• Minimum value detected during the hour and the time it was detected
• Maximum value detected and the time
• A special user-defined statistic such as accumulated total (if rate is being monitored) or standard deviation

ALARMS DETECTED & ALERTS GENERATED

Alert key personnel immediately via email, cellular text messaging, pager or optionally voice telephone if an abnormal condition is detected. The format of the alert messages is completely user-configurable and can contain real-time data such as current value, the type of alarm, the time that the alarm was detected, or the name and location of the appliance being monitored. A typical alert is shown below.

“An alarm condition has been detected on the 0.5um channel of the Particle Counter monitoring at column 2F. The current count is 35. The alarm limit is set for 30.”

The items in bold were automatically inserted into the user-defined message template. Message templates can be created on a group by group basis.

REAL-TIME DISPLAY

Log onto the system from any PC via a simple web browser and use the available charts, spreadsheets, and floor plan displays to determine the extent of the problems and how long it has existed. An annotated screenshot of a group values display is shown below.

Use the trend chart display to gauge the response time required.

REPORTING

The following built-in reports are provided with each CIMScan-server:

• Group Status Report
• Alarm History Report
• Measurement Data Log Report
• User Notes Report
• Trend Report
• Sensor Usage Report
• Audit Trail Report
• Statistics Summary Report
• Statistics Detail Report
• Alarm Limits Change Report

Users can easily generate their own custom reports using any one of the third party report generators available today.

Click here to download a white paper describing the available reports

VALIDATION

A CIMScan-6 Monitoring System can be formally validated in a fraction of the time it takes to do this with a competitive system. This is primarily because of CIMScan’s simple, straightforward architecture and the built-in validation tools provided. A complete IQ/OQ template package is available.

COMPLIANCE

Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology manufacturers can take comfort in the fact that CIMScan-6 possesses the necessary capabilities to ensure FDA 21 CFR Part 11 compliance.

AVAILABLE SERVER SOLUTIONS

We offer three possibilities to implement the server for your system.

Server software to install on your computer

The CIMScan Server Software can be installed on your Windows-based server computer for a one-time license fee based on the number of monitoring points. Packages for 25, 100, 250, and an unlimited number of points are currently available.

Small Server with Software Installed

We can also supply a 10 or 25 point system installed on a small Windows XP computer and configured for your application.

Click to download a datasheet for the computer used with the packaged system.

This is an ideal solution if you intend to purchase the components and install and commission the system yourself.

Your system hosted on our server

The least expensive monitoring system can be realized by utilizing our server for a small monthly fee. Four (4) packages are currently available to monitor up to 10, 25, 100, and 250 points. Every customer’s system is completely isolated from all other customers on the server. The alert delivery via voice telephone is included along with messaging via email, text messaging, and pager. Of course, we act as the system administrator for all systems hosted on our server.

MAINTENANCE

CIMScan, like any other precision instrument, needs care and attention to maintain reliability and accuracy. This, of course, requires time and therefore a cost is associated with it. To minimize this cost, CIMScan has been structured so that most of the routine maintenance and troubleshooting can be handled remotely, with on-site work required only for component replacement.  A simple, relatively inexpensive support plan is available which allows us to act as the system administrator, utilizing your IT department for computer hardware issues and your maintenance department for component replacement.

Click to download an outline of what’s provided with our support agreement.