Pharmaceutical Line Clearance New Vial Packaging Machine for the First Time at Achema 2024

Related Vendors

Gerhard Schubert GmbH - Verpackungsmaschinen

TURCK GmbH

Italvacuum, Srl

Schubert-Pharma presented a new machine for packaging vials at the recently held Achema exhibition in Germany. With this new solution, manufacturers will be able to meet line clearance requirements even more effectively.

This year, Achema was held in Frankfurt from 10 to 14 June 2024. Schubert-Pharma had its own stand at the 34th leading international trade fair for the process industry in Hall 3.1, Stand A95. For the first time, the packaging expert presented its new machine for packaging vials. What’s unique about the innovation is that this top-loading machine features a table-top design, unlike Schubert-Pharma’s open top loaders. This makes it even easier for pharmaceutical customers to guarantee the required line clearance, mentions the company.

User-friendly: Table-top design facilitates line clearance

The rationale behind the development of the new machine was to enable manufacturers to meet line clearance requirements even more effectively. According to the firm, line clearance basically means ensuring a streamlined, orderly work area to prevent product mix-ups. Pharmaceutical technicians must carry out a line clearance after packaging a batch to ensure that all products have been removed from the machine before a new batch is started. This innovation prevents mixing.

Due to the open design of Schubert-Pharma’s top-loading machines, it had been possible in theory that products would get into the base of the machine during the packaging process. The company was keen to close this gap and thereby developed a table-top design for the TLM machines. With the new vial machine, the company has made fulfilling line clearance specifications more pharmaceutically compliant and user-friendly. Manufacturers also benefit from time savings during batch changeovers as well as a higher level of safety and reliability, mentions the firm.

A vial machine for different formats

One, three, five or ten vials can be packed on the new packaging machine – either horizontally or vertically in the carton compartment. Packaging of five vials into cartons was demonstrated at Achema. They are fed into the machine using a turntable. At the same time, the 5ct cartons are erected in two lanes and placed on a Transmodul, Schubert’s transport robot. The compartment for the 5ct carton is then erected and glued into the carton. A pick & place robot picks up the vials arriving on the infeed conveyor and groups them upright on the Transmodul.

During this packaging step, there is no glass-to-glass contact thanks to the robot’s individual picks, so that everything is packaged securely for the pharmacists. An F2 robot is then used to load the 5-pack formation of pre-grouped vials into cartons. A tool tilts the upright vials into a horizontal position. Finally, the booklets are fed to the magazine in two lanes, destacked and loaded into cartons following a code check. The glued cartons are then closed and placed on the outfeed conveyor.

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