-- MicroVibe to set a new benchmark in the powder handling and microdosing market for ensuring 100 percent in-process control and quality of product
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Feb. 19, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Based on its recent analysis of the powder handling and microdosing market, Frost & Sullivan recognizes HARRO HOFLIGER with the 2013 Global Frost & Sullivan Award for Technology Innovation Leadership for MicroVibe, its path-breaking powder microdosing system. This system absolutely addresses customer requirements for flexibility, automation and in-process control, scalability, ease of handling and clean-up.
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MicroVibe's versatility aids the dosing of fine-grained powders of different characteristics using a vibrating capillary. Unlike conventional filling technologies such as the drum filler, which has fixed volume of dosing chambers, the MicroVibe powder dosing system is equipped with a flexible dosing range that is continually adjustable over a wide range of fills. The modular design of the system, with dosing heads adaptable to powder flow, enables a large dosing range by controlling the time of mass flow.
A key feature that distinguishes the MicroVibe system from the conventional filling equipment includes the use of a mass-specific sensor, VisioAMV. This technology facilitates 100 percent in-line verification of dosed masses, with special benefits in oral combination capsules, as the single components can be controlled separately by combining every single dosing station with the VisioAMV® system. Frost & Sullivan expects HARRO HOFLIGER to find extensive applications for the MicroVibe dosing system as a process analytical technology (PAT) tool.
Suitable for intermittent dosing as well as continuous microdosing (1 to 10 mg/s), the MicroVibe powder dosing system can be integrated into capsule fillers, blister lines, and machines to fill powder into medical devices, vials or other customized applications. Moreover, the small footprint of the dosing head enables simultaneous filling of multiple target receptacles such as blister cavities, capsules, and vials.
"Designed for product filling in clinical trials, the MicroVibe dosing system can be easily scaled up by filling it on more than one channel, such as on Modu C Capsule filler or into powder inhalers," said Frost & Sullivan Senior Research Analyst Aiswariya Chidambaram. "The capillary technology not only eases the handling of powders without any compaction or attrition, but is also suitable for dosing pure active pharmaceutical ingredients into hard capsules with the addition of excipients as back fill, thereby eliminating the blending of components."
One of the outstanding features of the MicroVibe powder dosing system is that the residual powder volume at the end of a production batch is usually less than a gram, as opposed to the several kilograms in standard systems. The low quantity of residue not only simplifies cleaning and product extraction but also makes them less expensive. The dosing head and powder contact parts can be cleaned and sanitized easily and the system even accommodates disposable dosing heads, making it ideal for aseptic filling.
As HARRO HOFLIGER's core business involves the design and development of special, dedicated machinery for pharmaceutical manufacturing and filling, research & development is one of its key focus areas. To ensure the highest level of accuracy, the company's site at Allmersbach is equipped with a controlled environment for handling active drug formulations and caters to the global requirements of its customers.
"Given its numerous benefits with regard to flexible dosing range, ease of handling, scale-up and cleaning, and above all, PAT applications, the MicroVibe powder dosing system is expected to be the new benchmark in the pharmaceutical powder handling and microdosing market," noted Ms. Chidambaram.
Each year, Frost & Sullivan presents this award to the company that has demonstrated uniqueness in developing a technology, which significantly impacts both the functionality and the customer value of new products and applications. The award lauds the relevance of the innovation to the industry.
Frost & Sullivan Best Practices Awards recognize companies in a variety of regional and global markets for demonstrating outstanding achievement and superior performance in areas such as leadership, technological innovation, customer service, and strategic product development. Industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analysis, and extensive secondary research in order to identify best practices in the industry.
