Your source for news, trends and analysis of pharmaceuticals, biologics, medical devices, and nutraceuticals.

We may be OnTheEdge of a major growth spurt for robotics on North American packaging lines. That is what some, including Ben Miyares of Packaging Machinery Manufacturers Institute (PMMI), reported at a robotics conference held over the weekend leading up to Pack Expo in Las Vegas last autumn. I think that this is great news for packagers! Robots can provide highly flexible automation options and mitigate capital risk on new lines that may be installed to support the launch of finicky new products. I'm not as confident that the news is as good for the robot manufacturers. While I would expect them to experience a portion of this growth, packaging machinery manufacturers have several options for bringing robotic functionality to end-users.

Nowhere in packaging are flexibility and fast changeover more necessary than in the contract-packaging arena, where multiple customers and their many SKUs are a fact of life. That’s why ease of changeover was a key machine characteristic sought by Brecon Pharmaceuticals recently when it came time to install a new line for blister packing and cartoning of tablets. This fast-growing contract packager, acquired last year by Amerisource Bergen, is located in the UK near the town of Brecon, Wales. Both thermoforming and cold-forming of foil are routinely done on this new and highly versatile blister-pack line.

San Juan’s Convention Center hosted the Feb. 1-2, 2007 Interphex Puerto Rico conference, with a keynote presentation delivered by Maridalia Torres, director of the San Juan district Food and Drug Administration office. One of the event’s highlights was a session focusing on Packaging End-of-Line Solutions, or PELS. It involves OEMs and controls suppliers working together to assist manufacturers of life science products.

AstraZeneca's post-installation line analysis showed that by adding a Hartness Dynac 6400 system to Line 4 of its Newark, DE, plant, it has significantly improved its Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE).

Build machines that can share data with machines built by other OEMs and find better ways to streamline fault reporting.

Conversations we’ve had lately with packaged goods manufacturers suggest that some of them are beginning to soften their insistence on a preferred packaging machinery controls architecture that they have established for themselves. Why? Because when a builder of packaging equipment settles on a controls package, it can build machinery faster and deliver it at a more attractive price. If the machine builder has to replace the controls components with what its customer wants, it can’t build, deliver, or maintain equipment as efficiently.

• SmartDate 5 offers the ability to integrate coder, controls into the touch screen for coding and bagging operations

• allows one controller to manage line and coder, and requires operators to only need to learn a single set of controls

Markem Corp.

• VisualMotion 10 control system for packaging machines fulfills the OMAC for Packaging Workgroup guidelines with its integrated IEC 61131-3 compliant PLC (IndraLogic), PLCopen compliant motion function blocks, open-interoperable SERCOS and PROFIBUS interfaces, and the PackML state model—scalable across drive, rack-, or PC-based architectures

• intelligent drives fulfill requirements of the PackProfile “extended” specification, and are certified

Bosch Rexroth Corp.

• L200 series drives offer side-by-side mounting, built-in timing logic, analog input match functions, DIP-switch-hand-off-radio, and RS485 Modbus RTU communication interface

• designed to be easy to install, use, and maintain

Hitachi

• EDG-6528 switch provides fast and cost-effective expansion of industrial Ethernet networks with eight 10/100 Mbps Ethernet ports

• Suitable for most applications in environments with extreme temperatures

Advantech Corp.

• Magelis Smart iPC is a thin client for Ethernet architectures, measuring 67 mm in depth and height

• Magelis Compact iPC is designed for embedding in compact machines or enclosures, providing a graphic interface with easy installation and integration

Schneider Electric, North American Operating Div.

• hand-held graphic user interface for the SmartLase 100i series of laser coders supports complex graphic characters and is simple to program and operate

• minimizes the need for operator training and helps eliminate programming errors

• meets coding needs of manufacturers that export products to countries requiring printed graphic characters

Markem Corp.

• QuickTrak linear guide reduces design and installation costs by integrating into machine configurations

• belt- or screw-driven systems suited for light industrial use in laboratory, medical, and packaging applications where precision-guided motion and corrosion resistance are critical

• DualVee motion technology provides long length, antifriction movement, and reduced noise and vibration

Bishop-Wisecarver Corp.

• combines an Allen-Bradley 1756-L6x family ControlLogix controller with a Sercos interface motion module

• provides control for three axes of ControlLogix integrated motion

• second motion interface module in the ControlLogix rack may be added for six axes total

Rockwell Automation