Technikon Laboratories, based in the Florida district of Johannesburg, South Africa, has installed four Flexicon PD12I peristaltic fillers with an MC12 controller from Flexicon Liquid Filling part of the Watson-Marlow Pumps Group. The fillers are used to fill a liquid vitamin energy supplement into stick-packs.
With a 60-year history and more than 200 employees at its 14,000 square metre facility, Technikon Laboratories is an independent pharmaceutical contract manufacturer of distinction.
The company is fully MCC (Medicine Control Council) and SAPC (South African Pharmaceutical Council) licensed and today boasts over 40 clients, including several multinationals.
Stick-type sachet pack filling
A recent client request to change to stick-type sachet packs for an energy supplement product led to a production dilemma.
“Our machine for this type of pack was geared for powder filling only,” explains the company’s Managing Director, Robert Verseput. “We needed to acquire fillers/pumps that would allow us to convert this machine to fill liquids as well.”
The solution arrived in the form of four Flexicon PD12I peristaltic fillers with an MC12 controller. Duly acquired from Flexicon Liquid Filling in October 2013, the four fillers service the eight-lane machine by splitting the dosing into two on each pumphead.
Now, instead of filling powder, liquid vitamins get pumped into the sticks as before the pack is sealed by the machine. The MC12 controller is triggered by a 4-20mA signal which actions the machine to fill 10ml of liquid vitamins into each stick simultaneously.
The pumphead works with a double tube element with a Y connector to combine two channels of flow into one, thereby providing a higher flow but removing nearly all pulsation. When required, the two channels of flow can be used individually as is the case with Technikon. This adds versatility to the way the pumps can be used.
Fastest growing solution
The peristaltic filling principle is the fastest growing filling technology in the pharmaceutical industry due to well-established advantages such as sterility, guarantee against cross-contamination and easy cleaning. These are achieved by the fact that the product is only in contact with USP Class VI tubing and a filling nozzle.
The modified machine at Technikon is now one of two automatic high speed GMP lines located in a pharmaceutical production area. Operating at 50 cycles per minute, the machine produces sticks (sachets) filled with liquid at a rate which is required in a high-capacity filling line.
With a slight modification in the standard design of the fluid path, 400 fills per minute has been obtained. Stick fill volumes vary between 4 and 25 ml, in typical batch sizes of around 1000 litres.
The Flexicon PD12I is an extremely flexible liquid filling unit, which can fill volumes from less than 0.2 ml to more than 250 ml with accuracy better than ±1% in the range from 0.2 ml to 0.5 ml and better than ±0.5% in the range from 0.5 ml upwards. This flexibility and accuracy is achieved without having to change anything except the bore size of the tubing.
The PD12 peristalitic filler also features an anti-drip function which is particularly important in sachet-filling applications. This helps to ensure there is no dripping between fills which could potentially prevent a proper sealing/welding of the sachets.
Good project
Both speed of fill and ease of cleaning are cited by Mr Verseput at Technikon as “important” in what he describes as a good investment project.
“High standards, reliability and service levels, including the ability to meet deadlines, is vital to the success of Technikon,” he concludes. “That is why ongoing investment in the latest technologies is so important.”
Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Solutions
- 01326370370
- info@wmftg.co.uk
- https://www.wmfts.com/
- Bicklandwater Road, Falmouth Business Park, Falmouth, Cornwall, TR11 4RU GB
About us
Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Group (WMFTG) peristaltic tube and hose pumps meet requirements including: value for money; low cost of ownership; reliability and ease of maintenance to the food and beverage, chemical, pharmaceutical, mining and many other industries.
We demonstrate how pumps deliver significant process efficiencies over the lifetime of the equipment. Whether performing flavouring addition in food processing, chemical metering in water treatment or mineral recovery, we have a solution which can cut pump downtime and reduce costs through higher accuracy metering and transfer. WMFTG has dedicated application engineers available to help customers make the right pump and tubing choice from a range providing microlitres per minute to 80 cubic metres per hour flow rates.
The only part of the pump to come into contact with the product is the tube or hose. This means there are no seals or valves that can wear or fail. Replacing the tube or hose can be performed quickly and safely. Peristaltic pump benefits include:
Total fluid containment with no seals No ancillaries Handle viscous and abrasive slurries and sludge Self-priming capability Dry running without damage to the pump In addition to their range of positive displacement pumps, Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Group has added PTFE-lined chemical and industrial hoses to their range. Aflex hoses are reinforced to withstand the most severe conditions and use.
Where we supply to
Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, South America, North America
Industries we supply to
Automation, Chemicals, Consultants, Components Electronics, Energy and Power, Food and Beverage, Glass Ceramics Cement, Metals and Minerals, OEM, Paper and Pulp, Pharmaceutical Cosmetics Toiletries, Plastics and Rubber, Recycling, Textiles, Tobacco, Water and Wastewater
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