Morton helps MSD to combat river blindness

A ribbon blender supplied by Morton Machines Co to Merck Sharp & Dohme's (MSD) production facility at Haarlem in The Netherlands is yet another in a line of Morton blenders sold to MSD plants worldwide. The blender will be used in the production of a treatment to prevent river blindness.

MSD works closely with dozens of non-governmental organisations, foundations, ministries of health, the World Health Organisation, The World Bank, UNICEF, and the United Nations Development Programme to provide treatments for river blindness (onchocerciasis), a tropical disease endemic over a large area of west/ central Africa plus parts of South America, Latin America and the Middle East.

This devastating disease affects some 18m people and is caused by the parasite worm Onchocera volvulus transmitted to humans by blackflies which breed in rivers and deposit the larvae of the worms into the people they bite. The result is intense itching, disfiguring lesions and lesions of the eye that can lead to blindness.

Back in 1987, MSD announced that it would provide its river blindness treatment, Mectizan, free of charge for as long as it is needed for the treatment of the disease. So far, some 250m tablets have been donated to treat well over 25m people in 31 countries.

unique double helix

The machine supplied by Morton Machines for MSD's Dutch production facility is a Model 'B' U-trough Ribbon Blender having a working capacity of approximately 160l.

All Morton Ribbon Blenders are based on their unique double helix ribbon agitator, developed by the company through numerous years of applications experience. They are available from 8l up to 30,000l working capacity with either U-trough or cylindrical container.

The MSD machine has a blending trough with generous corner radii and a high integrity electro-polished, crack and crevice free finish to meet MSD's demanding standards. Special blending shaft-seals were developed specifically for this application in conjunction with MSD. They are a combination of traditional 'stuffing box' seals and mechanical seals to ensure no cross contamination between batches.

Discharge is through a polished stainless steel 'no dead pocket' ball valve. The blender is furnished with a clean-in-place (CIP) washing system.

Even though Morton had gained 'approved supplier' status two years earlier following a successful bid to supply a blender for MSD's facility in Pavia, Italy, MSD personnel travelled from Haarlem to witness blending trials, and they undertook stringent factory acceptance trials.

Given the potency of the treatment, trials were carried out on a placebo mixture of powders. The degree of mixing was proven to meet MSD's requirements. Discharge tests proved that the minimal product retention was acceptable.

no residual chemicals

In addition, MSD required proof that the CIP washing system was effective on every contact surface: riboflavin was sprayed all over the internal surfaces of the trough and lid, then a UV light was used to prove that no residue remained after washing.

As MSD's project manager, Cees van Essen, confirms, 'We were delighted by the way that Morton engineers allowed us to work with them on every aspect of the project. Not only were we allowed full access during the trials, we worked with them on several design aspects, too.

'This close co-operation, using their expertise and our continuous evaluation of the machine design, guaranteed a good result for both parties.'

Morton Machines' total focus is towards mixing and blending. Established in 1859, the company has become specialists and world leaders in mixing and blending technology.

Its machines encompass design features offering end user benefits and which are protected by international patents.

Morton's product range includes Ploughshare, Ribbon, Z-Blade, Air Pressure Whisks, Batter Whisks, Gridlap type mixers, Mixer Granulators, as well as a host of Mixer Processor types.

willingness to work

The range has evolved as a result of their willingness to work with customers in the development of machines for specialist applications. The company's impressive list of blue chip customers encompasses a diverse variety of industries from pharmaceuticals, fine chemicals, food to building materials — all of which bring their individual challenges.

To reflect the diversity of its customer base, and to reflect the particular importance of the food and pharmaceutical industries, Morton has established two separate test facilities at its Motherwell site to satisfy the individual needs of their customers. One provides an hygienic cleanroom environment, the other caters for general and 'dirty' applications.

As Morton's John Fagan advises, 'It is the investment that we've made in appropriate test centre facilities that has been a key criterion in Morton winning approved supplier status from MSD.'