Completed installation of Eclipse EC rubber in a laboratory facility. The laboratory is in use with two lab technicians shown working in the photograph.

Cleanrooms & Labs: Why We Love This ESD Flooring System

To Ensure Performance, ESD Flooring Must Be Evaluated as a System

Because it integrates with both the building and personnel, ESD flooring, for any application, should never be evaluated as a standalone product. Neglecting to consider variables can result in a failed installation or a flooring choice that does not live up to expectations.

To ensure proper electrical performance as well as making sure that the floor meets all your objectives, ESD flooring must always be evaluated as a system. An ESD flooring system consists of flooring material, installation, footwear, fixtures and seating, with attention to how the system interacts with all components.

Eclipse EC Rubber, Best-In-Class for Cleanroom Installations

Eclipse EC (electrically conductive) rubber has long been recognized by contamination control engineers as the best-in-class ESD floor for cleanrooms. And it checks every box on our wish list for lab and cleanroom flooring. Eclipse rubber offers a unique combination of conductivity and inherently low charge generation, with minimal environmental impact, no plasticizers or PVC and no evidence of outgassing, making it ideal for space-grade applications.

Installed with DryFix™ conductive dry adhesive, Eclipse rubber offers a seamless, flash-coved installation. With DryFix, Eclipse rubber can be installed rapidly, 24/7, in occupied spaces without concern of VOC content and with no mixing equipment, trowels or messy wet adhesives.

Both Eclipse tiles and roll goods work as a floor with integral flash cove. Seams can be welded, creating a seamless installation, for a particle-free lab/cleanroom environment – on the flooring surface, as well as between seams and wall coving. Installed with DryFix dry adhesive, there are no messy adhesives to deal with, allowing Eclipse rubber to be installed 24/7 with minimal downtime. And the new floor can be used or walked on immediately after installation, minimizing costly production losses.

Learn More About StaticWorx Eclipse EC Rubber

The Crucial Step For Avoiding ESD Flooring Failure: Proper Installation

To avoid failed installations, the installation method should be as variable-free as possible. For preventing contamination, flooring in a lab or cleanroom space should be seamless. The floor should also be flash-coved with rounded corners to eliminate angular surfaces that collect contaminants.

People sometimes try to dance around these and other installation issues with quick-fix solutions, such as injection-molded click-together floors. Molded puzzle-piece flooring may have cracks or crevices or be prone to plasticizer migration and outgassing, contaminating the cleanroom.

DryFix conductive dry adhesive is an ideal adhesion method for ESD flooring installations in labs and cleanrooms. DryFix addresses all major concerns for cleanroom flooring. DryFix is quick and easy to install, with no VOCs and no outgassing. With no messy wet adhesives to deal with, DryFix allows for 24/7 installation in occupied spaces with minimal downtime. And seam-welding produces a clean, monolithic surface that’s contaminant- and particulate-free throughout the installation.

With DryFix™ conductive dry adhesive, Eclipse EC rubber can be installed quickly and easily, 24/7, in occupied spaces. No outgassing. No messy adhesives. No wait to use the floor.

Benefits of Eclipse EC Rubber Installed with DryFix Dry Adhesive

  • Ideal for labs and cleanrooms
  • Seamless installation
  • Dirt & particle free
  • No messy adhesives
  • Rapid 24/7 installation
  • Can be installed in occupied spaces
  • Minimal downtime
  • Can be used immediately
  • Eclipse rubber is PVC free
  • No outgassing
Background image is a cropped illustration of a contractor laying Eclipse EC (ESD) rubber flooring on DryFix dry adhesive. In the foreground at the bottom are two boxes. The top is a bright blue with the StaticWorx logo. The second is a dark blue-gray and includes the text in white: “DryFix: Instant Adhesion, Instant Traffic, No Fuss, No Wait”
Play Video about Background image is a cropped illustration of a contractor laying Eclipse EC (ESD) rubber flooring on DryFix dry adhesive. In the foreground at the bottom are two boxes. The top is a bright blue with the StaticWorx logo. The second is a dark blue-gray and includes the text in white: “DryFix: Clean, 24/7 ESD Flooring Install w/No Hassle, No Mess”
Background image is a cropped illustration of a contractor laying Eclipse EC (ESD) rubber flooring on DryFix dry adhesive. In the foreground at the bottom are two boxes. The top is a bright blue with the StaticWorx logo. The second is a dark blue-gray and includes the text in white: “DryFix: Instant Adhesion, Instant Traffic, No Fuss, No Wait”
Play Video about Background image is a cropped illustration of a contractor laying Eclipse EC (ESD) rubber flooring on DryFix dry adhesive. In the foreground at the bottom are two boxes. The top is a bright blue with the StaticWorx logo. The second is a dark blue-gray and includes the text in white: “DryFix: Clean, 24/7 ESD Flooring Install w/No Hassle, No Mess”
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Learn More About DryFix Dry Adhesive

Footwear in the Cleanroom or Lab

When specifying ESD flooring for a cleanroom, specifiers should consider the type of footwear people will use in the space. Following ESD-industry standard ANSI/ESD S20.20, most electronics manufacturing and handling facilities mandate the use of static-protective footwear. This is not always the case in cleanrooms or labs.

Some ESD floors, such as certain vinyl and epoxies, consisting of charge-generating base materials, do not perform properly unless every person in the space wears special ESD footwear, whether heel straps, toe straps, sole straps or ESD shoes. Eclipse rubber is the only resilient flooring product proven to be low charge generating even with regular (non-ESD) footwear.

The Importance of the Right Type of Seating

Specifiers should also consider the comfort and ESD performance of the seating they choose.

A system is only ever as good as its weakest link. Researchers have found that the weakest link and greatest source of static does not come from the floor itself. It comes from a person using the wrong type of seating.

Research by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) illustrates the importance of incorporating grounded chairs with a properly functioning ESD floor. ASHRAE research found that a person sitting in a standard non-ESD chair, even positioned on an ESD floor, can generate over 5000 volts of static electricity. The right combination of ESD flooring and seating will drop that number to less than 20 volts.

Source: Determination of the Effect of Humidity on the Probability of ESD Failure or Upset in Data Centers, Moradian et al, 2014

StaticWorx Bolt ESD chairs, the defacto standard in European labs and cleanrooms, offer superior comfort with the conductivity necessary to complete the flooring, footwear, seating chain.

Graphic labelled “ESD Seating - part of an ESD flooring system.” The illustration underneath shows a woman sitting at a desk. A yellow line with red dashes -representing charge being dissipated - runs down her, down the chair she is sitting on and then along to floor to ground (denoted by the ground symbol in three places). The text underneath reads “On an ESD floor, static charges dissipate from the person, through the chair and castors, to the floor, where they are transported safely to ground.”
Graphic labelled “Without an ESD floor, an ESD chair is like any other chair - it does not inhibit static.” The illustration underneath shows a woman sitting at a desk with red dots on her body to represent charge being generated. The text underneath reads “With no ESD floor, static charges stay in place, charging both the person and the chair, raising the risk of a damaging ESD event.”
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Once installed, the system – flooring, installation method, footwear, seating — should meet management objectives, as well as satisfying ESD requirements, and integrate smoothly with every process in the room.
Read: ESD Compliance in a Server Room (In Compliance Magazine)
Read: The Best ESD Floors For Cleanrooms/Labs Prevent Static Generation
Read: Cleanrooms and Labs: Why You Need an ESD Floor that Prevents Static

Get in Touch

The form below will help us better understand your needs and get you as quickly as possible to the right person. We look forward to helping you solve your static problem!

You can expect a response within 24 hours. For faster service, please give us a call: 617-923-2000

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StaticWorx Flooring Products

A completed installation of ShadowFX static-dissipative (ESD) carpet tile (Fields & Stone range) in a lobby
A completed installation of AmeriWorx conductive (ESD) vinyl tile flooring in an electronics manufacturing facility
Photo is a cropped shot of a laboratory facility with a completed ESD rubber floor installation.
An in progress installation of GroundWorx Ultra generation 3 ESD epoxy flooring in an electronics manufacturing and assembly facility.
Completed installation of GroundLock Extreme ESD interlocking tiles at a manufacturing facility

Useful Resources

Background graphic is a still from the StaticWorx GroundSafe ESD Flooring – Your Trusted Partner explainer animation. In the foreground at the bottom are two boxes. The top is a bright blue with the StaticWorx logo and "GroundSafe ESD Flooring" underneath in white. The second is a dark blue-gray and includes the text in white: “GroundWorx ESD Flooring – Your Trusted Partner”
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StaticWorx high-performance static-control floors protect electronic components, explosives, and high-speed computers from damage caused by static electricity. ESD flooring is part of a system. Choices should always be based on objective, researched evidence. When you partner with us, we look at all possible items that may need to integrate with the floor, and, focusing on your goals and objectives, help you find the right floor for your application.