Astell Scientific chosen for Imperial College London major laboratory refurbishment
The university’s Sir Alexander Fleming building (SAF) has undergone a major building refurbishment, including the Containment Level 3 (CL3) Facility, with Astell supplying seven CL3-appropriate autoclaves to ensure efficient, effective and consistent sterilisation.
With roots dating back to 1845, Imperial College London is a world top ten university with an international reputation for excellence in teaching and research in science, engineering and medicine. Imperial’s Department of Infectious Disease, with over 70 principal investigators, is one of the largest centres of infectious disease research in Europe and operates across sites at Hammersmith Hospital, St Mary's Hospital, South Kensington Campus, Chelsea & Westminster Hospital and Charing Cross.
Research in the Department ranges from the fundamental biology of infectious diseases to the development and application of new approaches to treatment. There are major research programmes in human immunology and retrovirology, oncogenic human viruses, molecular microbiology, tuberculosis and vaccine development.
CL3 Facility
Much of the cutting-edge research takes place in the Sir Alexander Fleming Building, located at the heart of the South Kensington Campus. In 2022, the building underwent a major refurbishment. The refurbished complex contains a CL3 Facility, comprised of 8 laboratories, half of which are dedicated pathology laboratories with the rest virology.
Faculty of Medicine’s Laboratory Operations Manager, Dominic Smith has used Astell autoclaves on other parts of the Imperial campus, and alongside User Co-ordinator, Capital Projects, Sam Tolhurst had responsibility for ensuring that sterilisation facilities in the refurbished laboratories met the stringent requirements of the containment regulations. Based on their previous experience, they consulted Astell Scientific.
Astell’s Solution
Astell supplied a total of seven autoclaves. Each device was equipped with CATIII filtration for enhanced containment, as is required for compliance with CL3 regulations. Two 63 litre AMB Classic Fill Benchtop Autoclaves provide quick and convenient sterilisation of small loads such as glassware, instruments, liquids and media, whilst five 120 litre AMA260 Top-loading Autoclaves are used for larger loads including porous and fabric wrapped materials and discards.
“Once again Astell has come up with a really practical solution”, says Dominic. “The autoclaves really live up to ‘plug and play’ description and their whole service is excellent.”
The Astell AMB Classic range features:
- Simple ‘Plug & Play’ operation via 5.7” colour touchscreen with integrated USB data port
- Electropolished stainless steel chamber
- Castor mounted for easy movement
- Media holdwarm and delayed start facility
- Base shelf within the chamber
