AirMail
NEWS
MAGAZINE
FROM
CAMFIL.
1/99
Filters for safety, protection
and clean processes
The role of filters at nuclear facilities.
Strategic co-operation agreement with Gore®.
Filters for Europe’s largest construction project.
Clean production for Viagra™ in France.
Analysing microbial growth in filters.
Safety first in the
nuclear
power industry
Clean air’s
vital role
t Camfil, we believe that the
quality of the air we breath
is vital for quality of life and our
working and living comfort.
Clean air is essential and people
are becoming more and more
aware of it. Indoor air quality
standards are becoming tougher
and requiring upgrades of ventilation systems to safeguard human
health. Our article on microbial
growth in filters touches upon
this subject.
Industry also recognises that
clean air processes are essential
for cost-effective production,
and for the quality of finished
products. Pfizer’s upgraded plant
in France, employs a range of
Camfil filters to clean air involved in the production of
Viagra™. The stringent climatic
conditions required at one of the
most modern newspaper printing
plants in Europe (page 4) also
uses Camfil filters for optimum
working and production conditions.
Another article highlights
one of our main application areas
– Safety and Protection. Since the
start of operations in 1963,
Camfil has provided effective
filter solutions for nuclear,
chemical and biological processes. In these industries and
others, Camfil filters clean potentially harmful exhaust air and
help protect the environment and
people.
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STAYING IN
THE FOREFRONT
Today, Camfil is seen as
innovative company. Gore,
example, has chosen us as a
operation partner (page 4).
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invest heavily in R&D and technical information for customers.
We have also joined the “www
community” with a brand-new
web site.
We entered 1999 – our 36th
year – with an expanded manufacturing base, a broader product
program, extended global coverage and a solid financial position.
We’re proud of our track record
and our clean air solutions based
on the industry’s best practices.
There is a lot of consolidation in the filter business today,
and only the strongest and most
innovative companies will survive. Most people see us as a
market leader and we intend on
staying in that position.
Nuclear power is the controlled release of the most
concentrated source of energy man has discovered
– the energy of the atomic nucleus. When fission occurs
– when the nucleus of a heavy atom is divided in two –
enormous amounts of energy are released. This happens
suddenly in an atomic bomb, but slowly and controllably
in a nuclear reactor generating electricity.
n a nuclear power station, this
careful release of energy is
mostly in the form of heat that is
used to raise the temperature of
water in boilers. This heat energy
is converted in steam turbines into
mechanical energy, which is then
transformed into electricity.
I
Good reading!
REDUCING RISKS
Jan Eric Larson
an
for
coWe
President and CEO
Nuclear power involves the most
widespread potential risk of exposing a population to radiation. On
the other hand, the industry has
always been in the forefront of
industrial and environmental safety to reduce risks and improve
operating reliability. The development of air filtration technology
over the years has a played a vital
role in radiation protection in the
nuclear industry. Camfil has
participated since the start.
An air filtration system at a
nuclear plant has to cater for
widely varying conditions and
may include a multitude of elements, sub-systems and ancillary
equipment. The strictest safety
and protection regulations are
enforced. Everything is designed
for fail-safe operation.
The prevention of even extremely low concentrations of airborne contamination is fundamental to the safe operation of a
nuclear facility and an important
factor for cost efficiency. This is
why the nuclear industry has
made major contributions to the
development of new and improved
air cleaning equipment.
PHOTO: NPS PHOTOSTOCK
radioactive particles and gases
which might be generated or released by the nuclear reactor,
during fuel fabrication, or during
radiochemical or laboratory operations.
Absolute and carbon filters
are almost universally included in
nuclear air cleaning systems.
Protecting the health and safety of
the public and plant personnel is
the primary task. A secondary
task is to avoid the high cost of
decontamination and possible
shutdown of a facility because of
an accidental airborne release of
radioactive material.
Filters for safety and protection:
More than three decades
of unsurpassed experience
AIR FILTRATION
DESIGN
PROTECTING PERSONNEL,
PUBLIC AND PLANT
A nuclear air cleaning system
protects the public and plant
operating personnel from airborne
The design of nuclear air cleaning
systems requires extremely high
collection efficiencies to meet the
maximum permissible concentration (MPC) values for radioactive
substances in air. Unlike dust,
fumes and other contaminants,
radioactive contaminants cannot
be detected by the human senses.
Due to the complete insensitivity
of people to the presence of radioactivity, MPCs for radioactive
material are much lower than
for most chemical contaminants
in conventional air filtration
systems.
HVAC requirements for a
facility using radioactive materials depend on the type of facility
and the specific service required.
For example, hospitals, corporate
and academic research centres, as
well as other facilities housing
nuclear operations or materials,
all have different filter needs.
Camfil offers a product range
meeting all air filtration requirements in this industry.
FROM SWEDEN TO CHINA
In Scandinavia, Camfil supplies filters to four nuclear power plants in
Sweden and two in Finland. The Finnish plants (TVO) have won a prize
for being among the world’s safest and most efficient nuclear facilities
(close to 40 percent of Finland’s power needs come from nuclear
energy).
The Group’s French company, Camfil SA, manufacturer of
Absolute filters for nuclear plants since 1967, supplies air filters,
activated carbon cells and filter housings for virtually all nuclear facilities in France, a total of 59 reactors producing 60 GW of electricity
(close to 80 percent of France’s power needs).
Filters and housings are also supplied to seven reactors in China,
South Africa, South Korea and Spain. The French subsidiary was
recently awarded the order for the next two nuclear plants at the Ling Ao
site in China, to become operational after the year 2000.
PRODUCTS
Each country has its own design specifications, requirements and safety
regulations for air cleaning systems for the nuclear power industry.
In Sweden, Camfil supplies Kombifilter, a combination Absolute/
carbon filter, and Trippelfilter, a three-stage filter consisting of a special
impregnated carbon filter that is sandwiched between two HEPA filters
of different efficiencies. These filters remove gases and radioactive
iodine.
France is Camfil’s largest market for nuclear plant filters. Key
products include Acticarb, Sofilair and special filters for glove-boxes.
Camfil GmbH is also the main air filter supplier to nuclear plants in
Germany and has developed Camcount, a brand new computerised
device for testing nuclear filters.
PHOTO: NPS PHOTOSTOCK
All air and other gaseous effluents
are exhausted through a ventilation system to remove radioactive
particulates and gases. This is
where High Efficiency Particulate
Air (HEPA) and carbon filters
play a major role such as Camfil’s
Absolute filters.
amfil has unparalleled experience as a supplier to the nuclear power
industry.
Nuclear facilities have been a customer for Camfil’s Absolute filters
ever since the early 1960s, when Camfil started to supply the Studsvik
nuclear research facility, located not far from Camfil’s international head
office in Trosa, Sweden. Over the years Camfil has become the leading
supplier to the European nuclear power industry, notably in Belgium,
Finland, France, Germany and Sweden.
Camfil Absolute filters remove radioactive particles and gases at
nuclear power plants and prevent the possible contamination of the
environment in the event of an accident.
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Exclusive co-operation agreement
for Gore® e-PTFE ULPA filter media
Camfil is launching an
additional line of ULPA
filters with Gore’s branded
filter media for the semiconductor industry.
Through co-ordinated R&D,
future-generation products
will feature higher filtration
efficiencies and other
enhanced performance
characteristics.
amfil’s Parent Company,
Camfil AB (Sweden), has
signed an exclusive co-operation
agreement with W.L. Gore &
Associates (USA), manufacturers
of the famous GORE-TEX® brand
and other well-known membrane
products.
According to the agreement,
Camfil can use W.L. Gore e-PTFE
ULPA filter media in its filters
normally installed in cleanroom
ceilings and process equipment
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for semiconductor manufacturing
facilities.
The agreement also calls for
W.L. Gore to discontinue its line
of DuraNet ULPA filters and to
transfer existing orders/accounts
to Camfil.
Camfil and its subsidiaries
will begin manufacturing and
marketing a complete line of
ULPA filters based on the company’s patented “closepleat” technology and branded e-PTFE filter
media.
CO-ORDINATING R&D
Camfil and W.L. Gore will be coordinating R&D efforts to develop
the next generation of e-PTFE
ULPA filters. In addition to
low outgassing properties, future
generations will feature higher
filtration efficiencies, lower airflow resistance and enhanced flow
uniformity.
Perfect
for printing
4
The unique microstructure of
Gore’s expanded PTFE membrane
provides an ideal high-efficiency
filter composed of billions of tiny
fibrils that are interconnected and
continuous. The unique chemical
inertness and thermal stability of
PTFE make it ideal for a wide
range of applications.
The new
products based
on Gore filter
media will be
produced at
Camfil’s plants
in Europe
and the
United States. The addition of ePTFE ULPA filters strengthens
Camfil’s position as the leading
supplier of high efficiency particulate filters for semiconductor
manufacturing facilities.
230 million papers for 4.5
million people. All printed
at one of the most modern
plants in Europe, now
operating in Oslo with
clean air from Camfil.
he Scandinavian country of
Norway (pop. 4.5 million) is
more than mountains, fjords and
saga-like scenery. It is also one of
the top newspaper-reading countries in the world, calculated on a
per-capita basis.
Norway’s two largest newspapers, Aftenposten and Verdens
Gang, are the most heavily read
and are now being printed in a
brand new plant in the Nydalen
area of Oslo. The plant, the
biggest in the Nordic region, is
owned and operated by Schibsted
Trykk, a member of the Schibsted
media group.
The new 41,000 squaremetre building has two printing
halls, a paper warehouse and
packaging section. The plant has a
T
design capacity for 230 million
newspapers per year and has been
operating since February.
STRINGENT VENTILATION
REQUIREMENTS
The Oslo printing plant, one of
the most modern in Europe,
requires the highest ventilation
standards for operations. Both
printing halls are served by ventilation systems that must keep the
indoor climate at a constant 20°C
and 50% RH, all year long. Since
the outdoor temperature can vary
from -30°C to +30°C in Norway,
it was a challenge to design the
optimum system.
To handle the job, the ventilation contractor (Randem &
Hübert, Oslo) chose Hybra
Modlair air handling units
(AHUs) that were specially designed and manufactured on site.
The filters for all air handling systems were supplied by
Camfil’s Norwegian agent, Kaare
A. Rustad AS.
2-STAGE FILTRATION OF
EXHAUST AIR
The system supplies 840,000 m3
of fresh air per hour, of which
520,000 m3/h to the printing halls.
Before passing through Camfil
EU7 filters, all air for each printing hall is supplied through
a huge 14 x 5 metre air intake.
Eight AHUs each supply 65,000
m3/h.
About 840,000 m3/h are
exhausted after being cleaned in a
two-stage filtration process: first
through EU3 filters to remove
large particles from the printing
process, and then EU7 filters. All
filter chambers, resembling small
houses, are designed to allow the
replacement of filters from the
outside and facilitate cleaning on
the inside. Gauges continuously
monitor pressure drop.
A total of 1,000 Hi-Flo
filters were supplied. Kaare A.
Rustad used Camfil’s design software for dimensioning the filters
and calculating life cycle costs,
which were a key factor when
choosing Camfil filters over
competitor products.
Royal visit
for Camfil’s
king-size
performance
n connection with his 25th anniversary as monarch, His
Majesty Carl Gustaf, King of
Sweden, recently visited Camfil’s
international headquarters in
Trosa, Sweden.
The King – interested in
knowing more about Swedish
industries that had shown strong
growth and development during
the quarter century he has been
regent – contacted the Swedish
Federation of Industries to select
three companies in Sweden that
met this criteria. Camfil was one.
I
Swedish King Carl Gustaf (second from left) discusses scanning equipment for testing
filter quality with Camfil CEO Jan Eric Larson (far right).
RECORD GROWTH
Camfil has achieved tremendous
growth during the past 25 years. In
1973, the company was one of
Europe’s leading air filter producers with 60 employees, SEK 8
million in sales and four subsidiaries in Europe. By 1998 the
Camfil Group had become one of
the world’s biggest filter manufacturers and the European leader
with 1,400 employees, SEK 1.4
billion in turnover and 26 subsidiaries and 37 agents world-wide.
Clean air for
service functions
for Europe’s largest
bridge project
The 16-km-long Öresund Link bridge and tunnel between
Malmö (Sweden) and Copenhagen (Denmark) is currently
the biggest construction project in Europe and will be
finished in the year 2000. Camfil air filters will provide
clean air for the service buildings, escape and maintenance galleries in the 3,510 metre-long tunnel section
and its service buildings.
he tunnel section will
be one of the largest
immersed tunnels in the
world in terms of volume.
The two service buildings for the tunnel section
contain rooms for the tunnel’s control systems, radio
communications equipment,
transformers and high- and
low-voltage systems.
T
In order to provide clean air to
these rooms, and thereby protect
the equipment and help ensure
their function, air is carefully
cleaned in Danvent air handling
units (AHUs) equipped with
Camfil Hi-Flo filters, class G3 to
F8/9.
A total of 320,000 m3 of air is
cleaned per hour. The main contractor for the ventilation systems
is Totalinstallatören (Malmö).
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amfil Industrifilter (Sweden)
has signed a three-year
agreement with ABB Stal
(Sweden) covering the supply of
air intake filter systems and
acoustic systems for ABB Stal’s
gas turbines, models GT35, GT10
and GTX100.
Camfil Industrifilter offers a
broad range of products and
systems for air filtration and
noise reduction, primarily for gas
turbines and other types of rotating machinery used in energy
production or the offshore and
marine industry.
The company’s filter systems
for air intakes remove contaminants from inlet air to provide maximum protection and availability
of downstream equipment in
widely varying climatic and
environmental conditions.
Camfil Industrifilter’s acoustic systems for power-generating
machinery bring noise down to an
acceptable level by using special
enclosures in combination with
taylormade silencers in inlet and
outlet openings.
In addition to ABB Stal,
major customers include AGA,
Demag Delaval, Dresser-Rand,
GHH Borsig, Sulzer, Wärtsilä
NSD, and Kværner Energy.
The plant is also producing a
number of other new pharmaceuticals to strengthen Pfizer’s
current range of special products
for treating illnesses such as
hypertension, depression and
Ahlzeimer’s disease, among
others.
Due to this broad product
programme, the Amboise plant
must meet the most stringent
requirements for quality and
operating reliability. Since Class
10,000 cleanroom standards are
employed in production areas, the
highest demands were also placed
on the air handling systems at the
plant, including air filtration.
PHOTO: IBL BILDBYRÅ
Global
supply
contract
for ABB
Stal gas
turbines
Filters for Viagra™,
the most-talked-about drug
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SIX DIFFERENT FILTERS
Air for production, supplied by 70
air handling units (AHUs), is
cleaned in Camfil Hi-Flo bag
filters (class F9) and Opakfil
compact filters. In sterile areas,
Camfil HEPA filters are used,
type Silent Hood compact filters,
SOFDISTRI ceiling and wall diffusers, and SOFILAM laminar air
filters, all produced at Camfil
SA’s plant in St. Martin Longueau
etween 1996 and 1999, the
US pharmaceutical company
Pfizer is investing FFR 400 million for a total rebuild and
modernisation of its production
facility in Amboise, France. The
investment program included the
introduction of a new organisation
based on ultramodern pharmaceutical manufacturing practices.
The Amboise plant, is situated
on a 40-hectare site that includes
special research centres. Eighty
percent of the plant´s production is
B
exported. The facility also serves
as a strategic centre for distributing Pfizer products to some 80
countries.
BROAD PROGRAMME
In Amboise, one third of production consists of Pfizer’s new hotselling Viagra™ drug – the little
diamond-shaped blue pill that has
been hailed as a wonder of the
modern age and given hope to
millions of men who suffer from
impotence (erectile dysfunction).
(France). This facility has been
certified to ISO 9001 quality
standards since 1995.
For the project, Camfil's French company,
Camfil SA, co-operated with L'ingénierie
TECHNIP (preliminary study), and The
Group RINEAU (climate system, laboratories and media systems).
Microbial growth on air
filters has been assumed to
pollute the air supply and
cause possible harm to
human health. Studies have
therefore been conducted
to analyse how microorganisms react in filters.
identified as a health risk in
indoor air. Many microbial problems indoors are related to
indoor moisture and could be controlled by designing better ventilation systems. Studies performed
by Dr. Martin Möritz, have shown
that, when the relative humidity
(the arithmetic mean) exceeds
80% for three days, there is a risk
of microbial growth occurring in a
filter and ventilation system.
As it is difficult in many
cases to avoid high RH in the air
intake, it is recommended that filtration should take place in two
steps.
MINIMUM F7
QUALITY
Dr. Martin Möritz, Professor at the Institute
for Hygiene, Free University of Berlin.
“Indoor Air Quality” (IAQ) is the
new buzzword in the international
heating, ventilation and air conditioning industry. Organisations
like ASHRAE in the US, and VDI
in Germany, are preparing new
hygienic standards for the planning, design, operation and maintenance of ventilation systems.
One aspect of IAQ, hygiene requirements, has come increas-ingly
into focus. Hygiene considerations
are now applied more and more to
filter replacement, for example.
Microbial agents have been
ASHRAE
reports on
anti-microbial
treatment
The first filtration step should
preferably be accom-plished with
a filter of at least F7 quality,
which should be changed after a
maximum period of one year’s
continuous operation or earlier, if
the final pressure drop is reached.
The second step, using a
filter of at least F7 quality, is not
exposed to high RH and effectively stops micro-organisms and
particles. This filter can remain in
place for about two years, as long
as the final pressure loss is not
reached within this period.
Thus, the risk of microbial
growth is low, but to minimise it,
ventilation plants should be designed so that RH is always below
90%, and that the average RH for
three days is less than 80% in all
parts of the system.
PHOTO: IBL BILDBYRÅ
Hygienic optimisation of HVAC
systems by 2-stage filtration and
monitoring of RH
FIELD AND LAB TESTS
In one of Dr. Möritz’s experiments, the prefilters of two large
HVAC systems were equipped
with three types of new air filters
and operated for 13 weeks. During
this time, the concentration of airborne micro-organisms was measured in varying climatic conditions – upstream and downstream
of the air filters, and on their
media surface.
Lab tests were conducted
parallel to the field test. Samples
of the same air filters were exposed to an air stream for 21 days
to study the reaction of microorganisms, and to determine if
microbial growth has occurred.
These tests were performed in
special climate filter testing
chambers under constant climatic
conditions.
As expected, high RH fostered microbial growth on the air
filters. The experiments also
showed that air temperature had a
stronger influence on the development and transmission of fungi,
compared to bacteria.
HUMIDITY IS
THE CULPRIT
“A comparison between the field
and lab tests had led to a
new understanding of how microorganisms react with air filters,”
says Dr. Möritz to AirMail.
“Periodically alternating climatic conditions, together with
the stream of air through a
filter, cause all collected micro-
Within the filter industry, there is an ongoing debate
about the appropriateness of using anti-microbial agents
in fibrous air filter media. In the US, ASHRAE has funded a
research project on the subject and reported on its
results (“Determine the Efficacy of Anti-microbial
Treatments of Fibrous Air Filters”, ASHRAE PR-909 Final
Report for Phase II.)
The project aimed to determine if treatments
inhibit filter media surface growth.
organisms to die rapidly in the
filter,” he con-tinues. “However,
when the RH is high, microbial
growth is likely to occur, leading
to in-creased growth of microorganisms in the air stream. As
shown in the field tests, this risk is
equally great for bacteria and
fungi.
“This new knowledge allows
us, for the first time, to characterise the premises to avoid critical
operating conditions for air filters
in HVAC system that may cause
microbial growth. Based on these
findings, we can now issue guidelines, like the one in VDI 6022, for
the design and operation of HVAC
systems to avoid problems with
micro-organisms,” Dr. Möritz ends.
USE HIGH-QUALITY
AIR FILTERS
According to Jan Gustavsson,
Camfil’s Technical Director, Dr.
Möritz’s research indicates the
value of using high-quality filters:
“Particles and endotoxins
from micro-organisms can loosen
in low-quality filters, and Dr.
Möritz concludes that a declining
pressure drop should no longer
be the sole reason for replacing a
filter. He recommends that lowefficiency filters be changed more
often, based on their operating
time instead of their pressure
drop. Filters of at least F7 quality
are also recommended, due to
their higher collection efficiencies
for micro-organisms.”
PROJECT CONCLUSION
Four tasks were carried out: a literature search, lab study,
field study and comparison of lab and field results. Filters
were obtained from media manufacturers and filter
companies.
The conclusion of the study is that there is no
difference between untreated or treated filter media
with regard to microbial growth.
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www.camfil.com
On the agenda...
Now you can surf to us
Camfil has joined the global community of companies represented on the world-wide web of the Internet. The Group’s
website, address www.camfil.com, features a wealth of general information about Camfil, our business concept,
products, subsidiaries and organisation. Everything is interactively linked for fast and easy browsing.
Camfil’s Clean Air Solutions
profiled in three primary application areas
Safety & Protection
– protecting the environment
Exhaust air from many manufacturing processes is unhealthy,
such as “waste air” from
nuclear power plants, mines,
For customers, Camfil’s
experience and knowledge
guarantee a sound investment in cleaner air – one
that increase their profitability in the long run.
Today, Camfil’s Clean Air
Solutions are offered to meet
customer needs in three primary
application areas:
Comfort Air – protecting people
Camfil ventilation filters stop airborne particles from diminishing
air flow volumes in ventilation
systems. During their entire lifetime, these filters keep air handling systems clean so they perform
well and maintain their efficiency
APRIL
15th-16th, NVTG, Drachten, Netherlands
15th-18th, Termodraulica Clima ‘99,
Padova, Italy
22nd-25th, Kiinteistö 99, Helsinki, Finland
Airexpo, Bruxelles, Belgium
MAY
6th -8th, Industriens Maskinmestre,
Copenhagen, Denmark
11th-12th, Cleanroom ‘99, Dublin, Ireland
26th-27th, NatMaint ‘99, Dublin, Ireland
JUNE
1st-3rd, POWER-GEN Europé ‘99,
Frankfurt, Germany
T
THREE PRIMARY
APPLICATION AREAS
MARCH
23rd-27th, ISH 1999, Frankfurt, Germany
23rd-24th, CleanRoom East ‘99,
Philadelphia Penn. USA,
SEPTEMBER
8th-11th, VVS i Bellacenter,
Copenhagen, Denmark
21st-23rd, IRCHEM, Cork, Ireland
OCTOBER
6th-8th, Hopitec, St Malo, France
12th-14th, SIPEC, Orleans, France
19th-20th, SEMICON Southwest ‘99,
Austin, Texas
to help safeguard the well
being and health of people in
the long run.
Clean Processes
– protecting processes
A few uncollected particles can
have extremely serious consequences in some processes,
such as the manufacture of semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, foods,
beverages and pulp and paper.
Contaminated air can also affect
the performance of equipment
like gas turbines. Camfil has a
full range of air filters to help
manufacturers maintain produc-
Want to know more?
For further information please contact the
Camfil subsidiary or agent closest to you,
or phone, write or fax to Camfil headquarters and we will see that your inquiry
is promptly handled.
laboratories and chemical plants.
Camfil air filters clean this air
before it reaches the environment.
If you would like a copy of
Camfil’s new brochures, write,
fax or e-mail your nearest Camfil
company or to Camfil’s head
office in Trosa, Sweden.
Head Office
CAMFIL AB, INDUSTRIGATAN 3, SE-619 33 TROSA, SWEDEN.
TEL +46 156 536 00. FAX +46 156 167 24.
NOVEMBER
8th-13th, Interclima, Paris, France
9th-13th, Expoclima, Barcelona, Spain
For further information please contact your
nearest Camfil company or agent.
CAMFIL AIRMAIL is a world-wide
publication for Camf il customers.
Available in nine languages.
Published by:
Camf il AB, Industrigatan 3.
SE-619 33 Trosa, Sweden.
Tel. +46 156 536 00.
Fax. +46 156 167 24
E-mail: info@camf il.se
www.camf il.com
Publisher:
Anders Freyschuss
Marketing Director, Camf il Group
Editor:
Margareta Swahn Forsling
Tel. +46 156 536 18
Fax +46 156 536 87
E-mail: [email protected]
Edition: 30,000 copies.Printed in Sweden
YMER REKLAMBYRÅ
his is one of the main messages in Camfil’s new corporate brochure, “Clean Air
Solutions”, which thoroughly
describes the Group’s business
concept, areas of operation, R&D,
range of customer services and
environmental policy.
tion standards and product quality
and efficiency.
Meet Camfil, Filtra Corp or Industrifilter at the following exhibitions in 1999: