HP Petri Dishes

What is a Petri dish and why it is needed

Petri dishes are flat glass or plastic containers (90 mm diameter), and are among the most used tools in the laboratory. They allow the creation of a controlled environment for the culture/observation of microorganisms and tests (e.g., antibiotic sensitivity). In our field, they are used to verify the absence of contamination in:

• Cleanrooms (microelectronics, pharmaceuticals, food), where continuous control of contamination sources and ventilation is essential;
• Isolators – machinery with high and constant sterility – where a more constrained operability occurs due to reduced space and the need not to remove the plate until the work is finished.

In practice, the agar plate is left exposed for hours and then evaluated: the longer the open time with stable performance is, the simpler and more efficient the monitoring becomes.

The challenge in isolators (and alternatives)

In isolators handling is limited; more plates and space are required, and frequent replacements create inefficiencies. Possible solutions include:

1. Robotic arms (effective, but not economically sustainable);
2. Real-time particle counter (e.g., BioTrak®) for complementary monitoring;
3. HP Petri dishes: drastically increase the useful life of the agar, reducing changes and handling.

Why choose HP Petri dishes

• Patented agar: exclusive QSGroup formulation.
• Extended duration: 8 hours of operational validity with stable performance.
• Shift efficiency: covers an entire shift, eliminating intra-shift plate changes.
• Reduced time & risks: fewer openings/manipulations -> less time-loss and fewer operational criticalities in the isolators.

Summary Comparison

Areas of Use

• Environmental monitoring in cleanrooms and isolators.
• Support for QA/QC procedures that require the absence of contamination in regulated sectors.