Magnifying glass clean and highly precise

Aerotech is responding to increasing global demand by further expanding its headquarters in Pittsburgh. Following the recent expansion of the production area and the purchase of additional systems and machines, the clean room area is now also being doubled.

With a broad product range specialising in nanometre positioning, Aerotech has carved out a solid niche in the field of high-precision motion control over the past 50 years. Aerotech Ltd, UK, and Aerotech GmbH in Fürth, Franconia, were the first European subsidiaries to drive the international expansion of the medium-sized US company. In the meantime, the company has grown to approx. 500 employees worldwide.

The spectrum of industries ranges from medical technology and life science applications, to photonics, semiconductor manufacturing, automotive and data storage, to laser processing, aerospace and measurement and testing technology.

“Many of our customers come from highly regulated industries with high process requirements. To keep the amount of airborne particles, particulates or germs as low as possible, sensitive products such as catheters or lenses are manufactured exclusively in clean rooms,” explains Simon Smith, European Director Aerotech. “In the interest of our customers, we also ensure constant conditions and avoid any contamination during the production of our positioning systems.”

He adds that it is imperative to live up to this promise of quality, even as demand increases. “We take our manufacturer obligations very seriously – in order to be able to produce larger quantities under the best conditions, we are currently expanding our clean room capacities at our headquarters in Pittsburgh.”

At the end of the construction work, the cleanroom will have an area of 600 m², which is about twice the original size. It will be expanded to ISO class 6 with cell-specific areas of ISO class 5. Additional investments will be made in cleanroom clothing, work equipment, tools and complete product ranges.

The cleanroom expansion is considered a continuation of a multi-year investment in facilities and operational capacity that began back in 2018. Aerotech added an additional 134,500 square feet of manufacturing, office, engineering and laboratory space to its Pittsburgh facility.