Previewing Solid Dose and Parenteral Packaging Innovations at INTERPHEX

A wide range of filling and packaging equipment, as well as packaging materials, will be displayed at INTERPHEX (April 26–28, 2016, Javits Center, New York, NY).

Solid dose innovations
CSP Activ-Blister materials from CSP Technologies protect moisture- and oxygen-sensitive solid doses packaged on thermoform-fill-seal and fill-seal equipment. Using silica gel and molecular sieve technology, outfitted blisters can absorb tailored amounts of water vapor, oxygen, or a combination of the two, and can be produced in shapes and sizes to accommodate any tablet and capsule size. (1).

Other material innovations include several specialty packaging materials from ACG North America: anti-fog NoMist film; UniDose single-dose packaging film; thermoformable, silvery Alukbliss film; and Immaculid polyvinylidene chloride-coated paper lidstock. The company also plans to display the Quest Nanoblis machine, a tabletop blister packer for low-volume runs such as feasibility studies (2).

For bottle packaging of solid doses, the Cremer CFS-622*4 tablet counter from NJM Packaging with Optel CountSafe vision inspection system and automatic tablet ejection handles tablets, capsules, and softgels at speeds up to 200 bottles per minute. The modular design accommodates one, two, three, or four counting modules, each with six discharge channels. Integration with Optel’s CountSafe guarantees 100% rejection of rogue doses, defects, broken product, and foreign material. The CountSafe inspection system verifies dose color, size, and shape and rejects any nonconforming objects. Because only good product is bottled, product loss and rework is minimized (3).

Quality control needs also will be addressed by the TabletProof 360 inspection system from Optel Vision, the TCI tablet and capsule inspector from Antares Vision, an Anritsu checkweigher from MG America, and the enhanced PharmaFlex iSeries deduster from Pharma Technology.

Parenteral innovations
The monobloc design of the compact Extrafill syringe filling system from Marchesini Group positions two tub opening and syringe filling/stoppering stations under one isolator. Speeds up to 200 syringes per minute can be achieved by adding one, two, or three more stoppering stations. A robotic arm peels off the protective Tyvek lidstock and pushes the tub onto a loading belt. To prevent contamination, syringes are centered and completely protected during the sterile filling process. Peristaltic pumps control filling (4).

Another robotic vial filling system, the Steriline RVFCM50 filling and capping machine from MG America, has an effective output of up to 50 vials per minute, and can handle vial sizes from 2 mL to 100 mL without changing format parts. Integration with an RA-V4 rotary vial washer, ST2 CCS depyrogenation tunnel, and EDM-C external decontaminating machine creates a complete line (5).   

Designing the top plate of the filler into the isolator, and manufacturing the units simultaneously rather than sequentially, cuts capital costs and delivery time for the Dara Moduline filling system from NJM Packaging. The system handles ready-to-use vials, syringes, and/or cartridges in nests or tubs or supplied in bulk (6).  

A vial innovation, Flexi-Cap Protect from Schreiner Medipharm, adds a base cap to the top label/cap combination of the original Flexi-Cap design. The base cap protects the bottom of bottles or vials against glass breakage and surface contamination. The label, which can be designed with a foam layer to increase protection against lateral impact, attaches both caps and completely protects the surface of the container (7).

Contract packager Whitehouse Laboratories, which was recently acquired by Albany Molecular Research, will stress its expertise in container/closure integrity and container leak testing. “As a leading expert in the area of testing specific to United States Pharmacopeia <1207>, attending INTERPHEX provides us an opportunity to share insights into best practices to evaluate and manage a product’s development and approval to ensure regulatory compliance for package integrity,” commented Mark Stier, general manager of Whitehouse Laboratories, in a press release (8).

References

1. CSP Technologies, “Answers to CSP Questions,” Email, Mar. 23, 2015.
2. Reed Exhibitions, “ACG Worldwide to Exhibit Wide Range of Technologies at Interphex 2016,” Press Release, Mar. 21, 2016.
3. NJM Packaging, “NJM Packaging Introduces the Cremer CFS-622*4 Tablet Counter with Optel CountSafe Inspection and Ejection Systems,” Press Release, Feb. 9, 2016.
4. Reed Exhibitions, “Marchesini Group to Launch New Technology at Interphex 2016,” Press Release, Mar. 7, 2016.
5. MG America, “At Interphex, MG America to Introduce New Machines, Including Next-Generation Planeta Capsule Filler,” Press Release, Feb. 23, 2016.
6. NJM Packaging, “NJM Packaging Introduces Dara Moduline™ Aseptic Filling System Inside an Isolator,” Press Release, Feb. 25, 2016.
7. C. Dale, “Interphex Booth Interviews,” Email, Mar. 16, 2016.
8. Whitehouse Laboratories, “Whitehouse Laboratories to Exhibit at Interphex 2016,” Press Release, Feb. 29, 2016.