Far-UVC for personnel decontamination at a Grade B cleanroom entry point - a brownfield installation

A European pharmaceutical manufacturer has installed the UV222 Wall from UV Medico for gowned personnel at the entry point to a Grade B cleanroom. Filtered 222 nm Far-UVC is applied in a 20-second, touch-free cycle, as an additional step to reduce microbial load on exposed gown surfaces. The facility was already in operation when the unit was added. 

The customer remains anonymous at its own request. Contact us to learn more about this installation. 

 

Installation at a glance

• Application: personnel decontamination at a Grade B cleanroom entry point, pharmaceutical production.
• Technology: filtered 222 nm Far-UVC, intended for use in occupied spaces.
• Product: UV222 Wall, wall-mounted, no enclosure.
• Cycle: 20 seconds, started touchless.
• Constraint: the cleanroom was already in operation and its floor was fully committed to process equipment.
• Footprint: 0.31m²
• Installed: August 2026
• Lead time: two months from purchase order to handover, summer holidays included.
• Manufacturer: UV Medico A/S, Denmark.

Why personnel are a contamination risk at a cleanroom entry point

Personnel are one of the largest sources of contamination in aseptic pharmaceutical production. Gowning controls what a person carries into a classified area, but no part of a gowning protocol treats the outside of the gown during the walk from the changing room to the cleanroom door. That walk is the gap this installation was intended to close.

This was a brownfield project: the facility was already built and running, so contamination control could not be designed into the layout as it would be in a greenfield build.  The room was in production as a Grade B area, and its floor was fully committed to process equipment. Any additional control had to fit the room as it stood, without re-planning the layout. 

Why filtered 222 nm Far-UVC rather than chemical disinfection or 254 nm UVC

Decontaminating someone who is already gowned narrows the options. Chemical disinfection is part of established practice at the gowning boundary, but it is applied by hand, needs contact and drying time, and repeated application across a shift is hard on gowns and gloves. Conventional germicidal UVC at 254 nm is used to treat rooms surfaces while they are unoccupied, so it cannot be applied to a person.

Filtered 222 nm Far-UVC is intended for use in occupied spaces, which is what makes a decontamination step on a gowned person at the point of entry possible.

EU GMP Annex 1 requires manufacturers of sterile medicinal products to maintain a contamination control strategy (CCS) and to minimise the risk of microbial contamination through quality risk management. Personnel entry into a classified area is one point where a site may choose to add a control. At this installation, the UV222 Wall was introduced through the site's change control and qualification process, as an addition to the existing gowning protocol.

How Far-UVC personnel decontamination relates to EU GMP Annex 1

EU GMP Annex 1 requires manufacturers of sterile medicinal products to implement measures that minimise the risk of microbial contamination. Personnel entry into a classified area is one point where an additional control can be introduced without disturbing an established process. Applying filtered 222 nm Far-UVC gowned personnel at that boundary adds such a control at the point where people cross into the classified area.

How a wall-mounted Far-UVC unit fits a brownfield production floor with no spare space

UV Medico offers customizable solutions for personnel decontamination at a cleanroom entry, and the room decides which configuration is specified. Where floor area is available, the enclosed UV222 Booth surrounds the person with a fully defined exposure geometry. In this installation the floor was fully committed to process equipment, so the UV222 Wall was specified instead: a unit without an enclosure, mounted flat against an existing wall, where operators stand on floor markings in front of it rather than stepping inside. That puts the unit in circulation space rather than on production floor.

The wall-mounted format also presents a single plane to the room instead of an enclosure, which suits a Grade B space where every surface sits inside the cleaning and validation regime.

Two design details were shaped directly by the cleanroom's own rules. The UV222 Wall communicates status through color and sound - readable at a glance in full gowning, with no screen or handset. And the unit is operated without physical contact, which is precisely what a gowning protocol exists to protect.

What the operator experiences during a 20-second Far-UVC decontamination cycle

For an operator, the UV222 Wall adds less than 20 seconds to the entry routine. Step onto the floor markings, hover a hand over the sensor, wait for the countdown bar, then continue into the cleanroom. There is no contact with the unit at any point.

Summary

Filtered 222 nm Far-UVC can be added as a personnel entry step at a Grade B cleanroom in a facility that is already built and running. In this brownfield installation, the UV222 Wall was mounted flat against an existing wall,  applies a 20-second touch-free cycle to the exposed gown surfaces of personnel at entry, and was delivered from purchase order to handover in two months.

See the UV222 Wall product page for detailed specifications.

If you are considering a decontamination step at your own cleanroom entry, contact UV Medico to discuss what it would take in your room.

Frequently asked questions

Does Far-UVC personnel decontamination replace cleanroom gowning?

No. Filtered 222 nm Far-UVC personnel decontamination is an additional step at the entry boundary, applied to people who are already gowned to the standard the classified are requires. In this pharmaceutical installation the UV222 Wall was added to the existing gowning protocol rather than replacing any part of it.

What is a brownfield pharmaceutical project?

A brownfield project is an installation into a facility that already exists and is operating, as opposed to a greenfield build where the facility is designed from scratch. In a brownfield cleanroom, contamination control equipment has to fit the room as it stands - within the existing layout, classification and personnel flow - rather than being designed into the plan.

Where else is filtered 222 nm Far-UVC used for personnel decontamination?

Filtered 222 nm Far-UVC personnel decontamination is applied at entry points to controlled environments beyond pharmaceutical cleanrooms.