Workshop on Assessing Characteristics of Cleaning Agents Intended to Clean Medical Devices

(In-person only event)

Date: November 11, 2025

Event Location: Atlanta Marriott Marquis, Atlanta, Georgia, United States

Organized by: ASTM Committee F04 on Medical and Surgical Materials and Devices

About the Event

The Workshop on Assessing Characteristics of Cleaning Agents Intended to Clean Medical Devices will be held November 11, 2025. The workshop is organized by ASTM Committee F04 on Medical and Surgical Materials and Devices, and will be held at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis, Atlanta, Georgia, United States in conjunction with the standards development meetings of the committee. The language of the workshop will be English.

Objective and Scope

Internationally, there are few standards that provide recommended test methods and minimum requirements for cleaning agents intended to clean medical devices. ASTM D8179 was a modest step in this direction, but now, ASTM Committee F04 is in the process of building on that standard. This Workshop will provide a forum for experts from across the industry to share their research and experience as it relates to cleaning agents. It is expected from this workshop that gaps and opportunities for further standards development activities related to cleaning agents will be identified.

Topics for this workshop include:

Case studies of cleaning with issues associated with cleaning agents
Current standards on cleaning of medical devices
Physical characteristics and performance factors relevant to cleaning medical devices
Methods for testing characteristics of cleaning agents.
Performance measurements relevant to cleaning medical devices
Gaps in guidance for cleaning agents
Regulatory perspective on cleaning agent performance and rationale
Proposal(s) for development of new ASTM standards related to cleaning agents for medical devices

Abstract Submission

To participate in the symposium, authors must submit a 250 to 300-word preliminary abstract no later than June 30, 2025 to any of the workshop chairs, Alpa Patel, Kaumudi Kulkarni, or Barbara Kanegsberg.

Publication Information

Symposium authors are required to submit their papers for ASTM publication in Selected Technical Papers (STP), an online and printed, peer-reviewed publication for the international scientific and engineering community. STP papers should be full-length technical papers of approximately 10,000 words, significantly contribute to the technical literature, and must include a review of past work in the relevant area and present information of current interest or probe new fields. After the final selection of abstracts has been approved, the ASTM Editorial Office will send authors’ instructions via email, but also can be found by clicking here.

Manuscripts to be peer reviewed for the STP are due online no later than DATE at the ASTM Editorial Office. The corresponding author (the author who is the main contact with ASTM Headquarters) will receive a copy of his/her paper in portable document format (PDF). All published authors will have the opportunity to purchase reprints of their papers at a nominal cost. Only those papers submitted by the manuscript due date will be included in the STP. Please note that all submitted papers are subject to peer review by two independent reviewers.

The STP will be submitted to the Library of Congress with an ISBN number and will be reviewed for inclusion in the Web of Science Conference Proceedings Citation Index (CPCI) and Google Scholar.

Technical Program

Registration

Registration opens approximately 10 weeks before the start of the workshop.

Registration

Registration is now open. The fees to attend this event are listed below.

	Through MONTH DAY, YEAR	After MONTH DAY, YEAR
ASTM Member	$100.00	$200.00
Non-member	$200.00	$300.00
Presenter	Waived	Waived
Student	Waived	Waived

Not an ASTM Member? An Individual Membership costs only $115.00. If you would like to become a member of ASTM International and Committee F04 to begin taking advantage of all the ASTM membership benefits, including attending this event at a reduced rate, please use the link below to join ASTM before registering for the event. After you have become a member, please return to this webpage to register for the event as an ASTM Member.

ASTM International Membership

All Attendees – All attendees are urged to register for this SYMPOSIUM/WORKSHOP before arriving onsite. All attendees must check in at the ASTM Registration Area to obtain their name badge before entering the event room.

Presenters– SYMPOSIUM/WORKSHOP presenters do not need to register. All presenters will be automatically registered by ASTM.

Students – Students may be eligible for a reduced registration fee provided they meet certain requirements. To qualify for the reduced fee, you must be an active ASTM Student Member, full-time student, not employed full-time, and be able to provide a current valid university email address for registration. To register as a student, please email ASTM Symposia Operations at symposia@astm.org.

Cancellations – A refund of the SYMPOSIUM/WORKSHOP fee will be honored only if requested at least 10 business days prior to the start of the event. To cancel your registration, please click the "Modify My Registration" button found in your registration confirmation email and follow the prompts to cancel your registration. Please contact Symposia Operations at symposia@astm.org or 610-832-9522 if you need assistance.

If you have questions concerning online registration, please contact Symposia Operations at
symposia@astm.org Tel: 610-832-9522, or ASTM Technical Support at https://www.astm.org/contact.

Technical Chair Contact Information

Alpa Patel
Nelson Laboratories, Inc.
Email: apatel@nelsonlabs.com

Kaumudi Kulkarni
Healthmark Industries Co
Email: kkulkarni@hmark.com

Barbara Kanegsberg
BFK Solutions LLC
Email: barbara@bfksolutions.com

Continuing Education Units

Workshop attendees interested in receiving 0.70 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) for 7 hours must complete the CEU application form in the back of the program booklet and email it to ASTM Symposia Operations at symposia@astm.org. You must be registered and have attended the entire event in order to receive the CEU’s. A certificate will be sent to you via email approximately 1 to 2 weeks after the workshop concludes.

Hotel Information

The event will be held at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis in Atlanta, Georgia. More information on how to make your sleeping room reservation will be posted approximately 12 weeks prior to the start of the event.

Hotel Information

All meetings will be held at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis, 265 Peachtree Center Ave NE, Atlanta, GA 30303.

Hotel Reservations:

Please support ASTM International by reserving your sleeping room at our official November Committee Week Hotel and Meeting site.

The discounted rate will be honored until the ASTM block is full, but no later than Friday, October 10th, 2025. The ASTM rate is $229, plus tax and fees. You may be charged a higher rate if reservations are received after the cutoff date or when the block is full. The hotel requires a credit card to guarantee your reservation. once submitted, a confirmation number will be provided electronically.

To book accommodations using the ASTM rate, please click here: The Atlanta Marriott Marquis

To book accommodations using the government per diem rate, please click here: Government Room Rate

The Atlanta Marriott Marquis has a limited number of rooms at the government per diem rate. The government per diem rates are set by fiscal year, effective October 1 each year; you will be charged the prevailing rate at the time of the meeting, not at the time of booking. To find current rates in the CONUS, visit GSA.GOV. The government per diem rate reservations may be made via our online reservation system, using the blue hyperlink above. You must present your ID at the front desk upon check-in.

CANCELLATION/CHANGE POLICY: Please make all cancellations at least 72 hours prior to arrival.

IMPORTANT! ASTM Rates are non-commissionable. If you book your reservation through a travel agent, they must ask for a non-commissioned ASTM Group Rate. ASTM cannot adjust your higher rate if commissions were paid to a travel agency.

The November Committee Week Hotel provides prime meeting space for your committee meetings, events, and activities. ASTM International is legally bound to fill the contracted guest room block, and an inability to fill the block will result in severe financial penalties, which could affect negotiations and increase costs for future meetings.

INTERNET: Atlanta Marriott Marquis has in-room Wi-Fi available to hotel guests. Marriott Bonvoy members will receive complimentary in-room Internet access.

Standards Development Meetings

Committee F04 invites you to attend their future standards development meetings. There is no fee to attend these meetings, and membership in ASTM International is not required to attend. For more information about the committee and their future meetings, please visit the Committee F04 Homepage.