Interview with Frans Maas, GEA Pharma System about why delegates should attend Interpack 2014
In the run up to this year’s Interpack trade show in Germany, Frans Maas, Vice President, Sales and Marketing, GEA Pharma Systems, discusses why it’s a must-attend event for the company and what visitors can expect to see on site: trusted brands, global supply and technical know-how.
GEA Pharma Systems has built a solid reputation for blending inspiration with technology, and it’s that mixture of know-how, experience and equipment that will be on display at Interpack 2014 in Düsseldorf, Germany, in May (8–14). “Interpack is a truly global platform for customer interaction and information exchange,” said Frans, “and a great opportunity to meet clients and showcase our products, technological innovation and expertise. It’s about addressing a customer’s challenges and delivering a solution, be it in compression, containment, continuous manufacturing or coating, what we call the 4Cs.”
The company is keen to spotlight its knowledge and expertise. “Operating at a global scale, we are a single-source supplier of trusted brands but, more importantly, we provide price–performance value for our customers: from a single piece of equipment or a module to an entire processing line; from API dispensing to tableting and coating. We’re constantly innovating and developing complete, integrated systems. Our insight and process understanding, derived from thousands of successful installations and projects, is what differentiates us from the competition.”
Another key strength for GEA Pharma Systems is reliable operational service and systems. “In my opinion,” stated Frans, “operational reliability is a much-underestimated key value. Putting it plainly, we design and deliver kit that works. We have a legacy of designing and delivering hundreds of high-tech installations and converting new clients into repeat customers. Our trusted brands, such as Buck™, Collette™, Courtoy™ and Aeromatic-Fielder™ are the cornerstone of that operational reliability and have been active in the process manufacturing industries, including Big Pharma, for more than a century. We’re not just in it for the short-term, we pride ourselves on being a preferred and trusted partner for the long-term, providing better technology, higher productivity, superior granule/tablet quality, flexible manufacturing concepts and a wealth of process knowledge.”
The Four Cs
In tablet compression, for example, the MODULTM rotary tablet press technology for contained applications and/or fast changeover is unmatched in the solid dosage industry. And, in the broader containment environment, the company has an unparalleled history of providing innovations in operator protection and reducing or eliminating the need for isolators.
Containment is an important issue in many of today’s production lines. “GEA Pharma Systems specialises in contained materials handling solutions,” said Frans, “With Buck Systems™ and Buck® high containment split butterfly valves, we offer a wide range of technologies and equipment that improve and enhance the efficiency and performance of solid dosage form plants for the safe transfer of powders.”
GEA Pharma Systems can also supply a range of coating systems for particles, powders, granules, crystals, pellets and tablets, which, in the case of tablets, can also be integrated into a continuous line. The FlexStream™, for example, is an innovative multipurpose processor that uses proven fluid bed technology to achieve granulation, drying and pellet/tablet coating in a single processor. Similarly, the ConsiGmaTM coater from GEA Pharma Systems is a revolutionary, new, high performance tablet coating technology that accurately deposits controlled amounts of coating materials on tablets — even if they are hygroscopic or friable. Designed specifically to be a high quality, economical alternative to batch coaters, the unit is able to coat small quantities of tablets at very high rates, offering improved heat and mass transfer and using much less coating material than traditional technologies. It can be used as an integral part of the ConsiGma™ continuous line for various granulation applications, as well as direct compression, or linked to a tablet press.
Global Reach
Beyond machinery, GEA Pharma Systems has a global reach, particularly in the areas of delivery, support and after-sales customer service. Said Frans: “No matter how developed the domestic market is or how diverse the application or location, we’re able to do business anywhere on the planet. We’ve supplied solutions in many, many countries, particularly in Eastern Europe, Latin America and the Asia-Pacific region, which is representative, we feel, of where the core growth is in the pharmaceutical market.”
For example, emerging and developing countries represent a significant opportunity for vaccine manufacturers. Diessel™ and Lyophil™ produce and supply process systems for the production and freeze-drying of liquid and fermentation products, including vaccines. “This is an important area for GEA and we are very active in this market; we’ve worked on some key projects with a number of clients, all over the world, to help them produce high quality vaccines to meet the unmet needs of these patients,” said Frans.
In Summary
Frans wants visitors to come away from Interpack with the knowledge that, as a reliable, single-source solution provider, “We’re there, we’re stable, we have the know-how and the technology and the experience … and we innovate. Not only that, we do it consistently, delivering the price-performance value and dependability that our customers want. And it’s not just about tangible technology, it’s about the breadth of expertise and the long history of success stories that contribute to that knowledge, all of which is driven by the passion and proficiency of our people.”
Visitors to the GEA stand will not only get to see the latest pharmaceutical innovations at Interpack. As GEA Pharma Systems is part of the greater GEA Group, the company will be exhibiting beyond the drug manufacturing industry and displaying process equipment and solutions for the food, dairy, beverage, chemical and home and personal care sectors. With such a comprehensive range of machinery, equipment, modules, components and technology, the GEA Group really does process and pack it all!
