Connected industry and its opportunities for pharmaceutical production – 300 international pharma experts discussed this topic from 10 to 11 May in Crailsheim, Germany. “Pharmatag 2016 offered the 300 participants from all over the world a versatile mix of lectures, podium discussions and new technologies,” said Joachim Brenner, general manager at Bosch Packaging Technology in Crailsheim. “The growing number of participants of this triannual event shows that Bosch Packaging Technology plays a leading role in the pharmaceutical industry and the high customer demand for events like this.”
Focus on pharmaceutical line competence
On day one, the guests of Pharmatag had the opportunity to look behind the scenes of the Crailsheim production facility and to receive first-hand information about Bosch’s pharmaceutical line competence as well as current portfolio expansions. A special highlight was the launch of the new ALF 5000 filling and closing machine for ampoules and injection bottles. Apart from an output of 600 containers a minute, the machine features high flexibility and process safety.
The second day with lectures and a podium discussion was opened by Friedbert Klefenz, president of Bosch Packaging Technology. In his key note speech, Thomas Bauernhansl, head of the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation, and the Institute of Industrial Manufacturing and Management at the University of Stuttgart, gave insights into the opportunities of industry 4.0, as well as an outlook on the future of pharmaceutical production.
Representatives of the companies AbbVie, Eli Lilly, NNE Pharmaplan, Roche Diagnostics and Vetter Pharma reported on unusual projects, current challenges and future trends, such as filling of highly potent pharmaceuticals and innovative approaches for the development of parenteral dosage forms. The subsequent podium discussion addressed quality, flexibility and industry 4.0 in pharmaceutical manufacturing. Claudia Petersen, global director business development at Gerresheimer, led through the programme.
CPI software for connected serialization
Apart from numerous filling machines and lines for liquid pharmaceuticals, the participants also received information about exterior washing of vials and ampoules (RAN 3080), the combination of visual inspection technology and leak detection (AIM 3000), matching downstream equipment (RIL 3010), as well as special customer projects. Secondary packaging and serialization solutions completed the presentation of Bosch’s pharmaceutical line competence.
Moreover, Bosch showcased further industry 4.0 application possibilities for the pharmaceutical industry. Combined with the CPI software from Bosch, Track & Trace solutions can be integrated into the company IT in a multi-level process. This way, manufacturers are not only able to process the entire order management; they also control both import and export of the serial numbers. All relevant data is available in the company network and can be transferred to regulatory or company-owned databases according to regulatory requirements.
