The MELAG Vacuclave Range – How to Future-proof an Autoclave

Autoclaves play a crucial role in modern dentistry. Rapid decontamination of tools and equipment is what keeps patients and dental teams safe from harmful contaminants. To keep up with the changing demands of dental practices, autoclaves have changed too, becoming smaller to provide more surface space, having a broader array of cycles for different pieces of equipment. We’ll be looking at how one of the outstanding autoclave brands in the field, MELAG, ensures their autoclaves are able to exceed the expectations of practices around the world. We’ll be paying particular attention to the Vacuclave models 105 & 305, as we believe they are standout examples of future-proofed autoclaves. 

Autoclave Innovation 
Autoclaves are complex, intricate machines but the broad shape of what an autoclave does hasn’t changed enormously since its invention in 1879. It uses pressure and heat to carry out sterilisation, among other processes. In the dental practice, autoclaves use steam to quickly and effectively sterilise medical tools, equipment and devices, and this hasn’t changed. So, what is there to improve? 

Speed: 
Speed is a limiting factor in some autoclaves. With cycles taking anywhere between thirty to ninety minutes to complete, dental teams need to be able to schedule their work around steam cleaning cycles if they intend on using the same tool twice. This is often an involved process, requiring precise placement of dirty tools in specific parts of the autoclave chamber for a tool to be properly cleaned. Being able to streamline this process from the beginning to end would provide significant time savings for many dental practices and is the goal for many autoclave manufacturers. 
Both the MELAG Vacuclave 105 and 305 have super-fast cycle times which start as low as 6.5 minutes, which includes drying. This is a standout feature for the MELAG Vacuclave range, with massively reduced instrument downtime between cycles. This becomes particularly useful when the item which is being cleaned is practice-essential, such as the autoclavable handle of the Steri-Mate 360 Rotating Handpiece from Dentsply. 

Traceability 
A very important part of the autoclaving process is maintaining compliance and batch control identification. Knowing when, and to what standard an item has been cleaned is a legal requirement and helps to protect patients from potential contaminants, as well as keeping practices compliant. 
The MELAG Vacuclave 305 utilises an operating system called MELAcontrol Pro, which provides paperless batch release, user authentication and, if necessary, barcode label printing using the MELAprint 80 without any additional software. The MELAcontrol Pro is a test body for "Class B" steam sterilizers, one which simulates the requirements for sterilizing hollow instruments. Its test strips are readily available and can be replaced once used. This helps to ensure compliance and traceability. Batch release results are available on the MELAG Vacuclave 305’s Display screen too, just a nice bonus to its ease-of-use.  

Ease-of-use: 
Autoclaves need to be quick and simple to use. In a busy practice, no-one wants to have their focus and time drained by an autoclave that doesn’t have intuitive controls or software. An example of this would be autoclaves with digitised displays which show when filters, or water need to be changed. This is a user-intuitive way of streamlining a necessary admin task, which can be difficult to keep on top of.
The MELAG Vacuclave range has a large touch-screen display which helps you to navigate any of your vacuclave's important functions, as well as providing necessary notifications and warnings. 

Size & Space:  
Autoclaves are hefty pieces of equipment, ranging from 3 to 32 litres of capacity and can take up a lot of room in the practice. While chamber sizes aren’t likely to change, the surrounding size of the autoclave, it’s frame, can be streamlined. So as to give dental teams more countertop space. 
The 105 and 305 Vacuclave models at 5 litres of capacity have a footprint of (W x H x D) 30 x 30 x 59 cm. This is very compact, and considering that both models keep a low profile of just 30cm, a MELAG vacuclave is excellent for space-conscious clinics. 

Energy Efficiency  
Disinfecting and sterilising equipment using large amounts of high-temperature steam is always going to be an energy-intensive process. However, efficiencies can be made during sterilisation, making the process that little bit greener, and less expensive to run too! 
The MELAG vacuclave 305 and 105 both have Power Saving energy-efficient modes. Giving you an energy-friendly alternative to super-fast sterilisation cycles. 

Reliability: 
We’ve talked a little bit about how business-critical autoclaves are, so it should be no surprise that an autoclave failing is a troubling prospect for most practices. Unless you have a backup autoclave you can rely on, this means your team won’t be able to use sterile tools for any kind of procedure. Often meaning appointments are delayed, cancelled, and put off until the issue has been sorted. 
The MELAG 105 & 305 vacuclave models are both made with high-quality parts, and post-assembly, every device has been subjected to a three-day endurance and stress test, including factory testing. Any issues are documented, and immediately tested further or rectified. MELAG take their equipment’s reliability very seriously!

What MELAG has to say 
We reached out to MELAG for comment on the Vacuclave 105 & 305, here’s what they said: 
“At MELAG, we designed the Vacuclave 105 and 305 models to meet the daily challenges of dental practices. The Vacuclave 105 offers fast sterilisation, with cycles starting at 6.5 minutes, while being compact and energy efficient. It is ideal for environments where space is limited but performance is essential. The Vacuclave 305 goes even further by incorporating advanced technologies such as DRYtelligence, which optimises drying time, and ProControl, enabling paperless batch management and label printing via MELAprint 80 directly on the screen. These features enhance the efficiency and traceability of sterilisation processes, meeting the growing demands of the industry. These models illustrate our commitment to combining innovation, quality made in Germany and practicality, helping to improve everyday dental practices.” 

Shop the MELAG Range with DD. 
The MELAG Vacuclave 105 
The MELAG Vacuclave 305 
See MELAG’s homepage