Autoclaves in Biohazardous and Infectious Environments

 

The need is not new. Since the dawn of medical research, a need for reliable disposal of biomedical, biohazardous, and infectious waste has existed. For many universities and research laboratories, the simple solution has been to hire a processing company and be done with the disposal process as soon as that supplier takes the waste. However, there are a multiple issues to consider before the next annual contract is signed with the biomedical waste management company.

Variable vs. Fixed Spending

The continued utilization of biomedical waste management companies leaves universities and commercial organizations exposed to the variability of operating expenses. Contract costs fluctuate with gas prices, insurance rates, and mark-up costs that multi-level logistics organizations charge.

Conversely, purchasing autoclaves for high-output facilities allows a fixed spending plan with multi-year amortization to defray the investment costs over several years. The multi-year amortization plan replaces the varying expense of the waste management contract. To protect your investment, Beta Star autoclave chambers are able to be covered under a 15-year warranty against the loss of chamber integrity.

Schedule Dependency and Lost Efficiencies

Building a streamlined approach to disposal of biomedical waste fulfills the research cycle from start to finish. Relying upon third-party organizations for waste disposal creates a high risk bottleneck that threatens your research process and facility’s safety. Conforming to a third party’s schedule requires you to create storage for biomedical waste, in its contaminated state, at your facility. Scheduling and pick-up costs necessitate storage of dangerous waste until enough waste is accumulated to financially and logistically warrant a pick-up. During this time, your organization opens itself up to accidental exposure caused by the mishandling and mismanagement of waste. An autoclave provides your staff with a way to immediately sterilize biomedical waste on-site, and lowers the number of dangerous movements of medical waste in biomedical waste bags (a.k.a. the “red bags”).

Meeting Legislative and Organizational Requirements

Legislative regulations on biomedical waste first started in 1984 when the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) enacted the Hazardous and Solid Wastes Amendments (HSWA) to prohibit the land disposal of hazardous wastes while the wastes remained hazardous. Subsequently, the Medical Waste Tracking Act (MWTA) of 1989 was also enacted by the US EPA to reduce medical waste that was being disposed of at sea and washing up on East Coast beaches. The MWTA lasted for 2 years, until 1991, when the act expired and legislature controlling medical waste sterilization and disposal was picked up by state legislatures.

For our purposes, we will look at the requirements put forth by California’s Department of Public Health, and the approved methods it defines. As one of the strictest legislative states in the United States, California sets a good benchmark for biomedical waste disposal. Section 118215(c) of California’s standards and acceptable processes outlines standard processes for converting medical waste to solid waste, where it can be disposed of through approved and inexpensive trash removal methods. Of the limited standard options, sterilization through the use of autoclaves (referred to as steam sterilizers in the legislation) is listed with clearly defined operational outlines for time, temperature, pressure, and container type.

We Want to Help

At Beta Star, we’re passionate about research. More importantly, we understand the importance of protecting your research and the people inside your facility. As a custom designer and manufacturer of autoclaves, we want to work with you to provide a solution for efficient and thorough sterilization of biomedical waste in your facility. Get in touch with us today!

Defining the seemingly synonymous terms for sterilization equipment

In the world of sterilization, there are a number of terms related to the equipment used to sterilize items in a laboratory such as: bedding, cages, instruments, tools, and hazardous waste. That equipment is frequently called a sterilizer, steam sterilizer, or autoclave, often shrouded in unknown reasoning behind the word choice.  While often used synonymously, there are distinctions between the three descriptions of sterilization equipment that must be understood.

 

STERILIZER

A sterilizer is any piece of equipment that is used to destroy all living organisms within the chamber through the use of specifically programmed sterilization cycles. By definition, Webster’s defines a sterilizer as a piece of equipment used to destroy microorganisms in or on, usually by bringing to a high temperature with steam, dry heat, or boiling liquid. However, there are a broad range of processes used for sterilizing:

• Dry Heat Sterilization
• Gas/Chemical Sterilization
• Glass Bead Sterilization
• Steam Sterilization
• Sterilization With Ultraviolet Radiation

As a manufacturer, Beta Star specializes in the manufacturing and service for sterilizers that utilize saturated steam as the agent for sterilizing laboratory equipment and vivarium supplies such as animal cages, bedding, and waste. Beta Star also manufacturers specialized steam sterilizers used for bio-pharmaceutical research and production. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notes that of all methods available for sterilization, moist heat in the form of saturated steam under pressure is the most dependable.

 

AUTOCLAVE VS. STEAM STERILIZER

While the terms Autoclave and Steam Sterilizer are often used interchangeably…it is important to note that Autoclaves are used in many industrial applications including rubber vulcanization, plastic production and composite material curing. Autoclaves and Steam Sterilizers utilize a pressure vessel to subject vessel contents to controlled temperature and pressure conditions.

Steam Sterilizers are a specialized type of Autoclave which are designed, programmed and calibrated to render biological material sterile by precisely controlling, monitoring and recording chamber pressure, temperature and exposure time. Steam Sterilizers fulfill a critical role in laboratory research, bio-pharmaceutical production, and healthcare facilities as they provide precisely controlled, reproducible conditions used to maintain research integrity, pharmaceutical drug development and patient contact and inject-able materials.

7 Tips to Consider When Entering the Sterilizer Purchasing Process

Buying a sterilizer can be a daunting task, with many customization options and features to choose from. However, it does not have to be. Our 7 Tips to Buying a sterilizer is meant to guide you along the purchasing decision with important questions to ask and keys to look for.

1. Industry Experience

Many university, biomedical, and pharmaceutical projects require unique insight and creative problem solving to bring a sterilization lab design concept to life with an installed sterilizer. It could be limited horizontal space for door operation, restrictive egress issues, excessive water consumption, or limited sterilizer size options.

2. Equipment Sourcing Location

Sterilizers manufactured in your home country facilitates a number of different value-added benefits to you as the end user. These benefits are numerous and significant: reduced lead-time due to the elimination of international fulfillment and logistics, minimizing risk associated with currency fluctuation, supporting the creation of jobs at home, and simplify the ability to oversee the sterilizer Factory Acceptance Testing.

3. Service and Support Options

Keeping your equipment running at peak performance requires preventative maintenance and support, akin to changing the oil and rotating the tires on your car. Not only service, but the ability to quickly get spare parts for inventory stocking and replacement must be a factor in your buying decision.

4. Internet Of Things (IoT) Connectivity

The world, and its equipment, is becoming more connected by the month with technology enabling Internet of Things (IoT) capability. This should not have to end with sterilization. Thanks to encrypted internet connections, sterilizer observation and technical support can be done remotely to facilitate online and immediate service with technical support personnel.

5. Cost of Ownership

The initial cost of the sterilizer is only a part of the overall cost of owning and operating a sterilizer. In addition to the sterilizer, the cost of spare parts and technical support needs to be researched and factored into the purchase decision when considering the lifetime cost of the sterilizer.

6. Water Conservation

When a sterilizer runs all day long, thousands of gallons of water can be consumed. Make sure to evaluate water conservation options during your sterilization search.

7. Project Integrators

For new and expanding facilities, the ability to purchase all equipment through one supplier makes the purchasing process easy. Make sure you can get all your equipment, including sterilizers, washers, and vent hoods with one decision.

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Click here to download the Buying Tips as a PDF.

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