DME wins award for engineering excellence

US-based engineering services provider DME was recognised at the recent ABC Keystone Chapter Excellence in Construction Awards Gala as part of its collaboration with Horst Construction of Lancaster, PA, for their work on West Pharmaceutical Services' Kinston, NC cleanroom facility.

DME of Allentown, PA, provided engineering design for the facility addition and renovations, as well as construction administration services.

West Pharmaceutical Services manufactures packaging components and delivery systems for injectable drugs and healthcare products. DME’s project for West Pharma Kinston required facility upgrades to create new cGMP compliant manufacturing spaces, including cleanroom manufacturing areas, microbiology and QC-labs, and the expansion of central plant utilities.

The manufacturing suites were designed with a central makeup air handing unit serving dedicated cleanroom recirculation units to maintain proper airflow for areas with specific ISO classifications. The project also included the design of a new electrical service entrance and a new natural gas fired emergency generator.

To enable West to showcase the new facility to its customers, floor to ceiling glass panels were incorporated to allow viewing of production cleanrooms from an exterior corridor.

According to Ed Hill of West Pharmaceuticals, 'West had a vision for the Kinston expansion project that went beyond merely expanding production capacity at the site. We strived to develop an optimum manufacturing space that offers our customers a superior West experience and transparency to the process, while adhering to the latest cGMPs. The expertise of DME in collaboration with West was integral in turning this vision into reality.'

Ed Caulkins, Director of Facilities Engineering at DME and project manager added: 'Not only does the design provide a useful method for auditors to inspect operations from outside the cleanroom, it also serves as a valuable marketing tool for the client to display their operations to prospective customers.'

In addition to DME and Horst Construction, Eric Walker, AIA of Lancaster, PA will be honoured for this project.

The award organiser, ABC Keystone (www.abckeystone.org), operating out of Rapho Business Park, Manheim, represents over 600 construction-related firms and is part of a national association with 72 chapters. The ABC Excellence in Construction awards recognise the members most outstanding construction projects.