Schott opens a new coating plant
Schott forma vitrum has opened a new coating plant at its site in Muelheim, Germany. The plant will triple the company\'s capacity to produce coated pharmaceutical vials, and it now expects to manufacture around 10 million Type I plus vials per year.
Schott forma vitrum has opened a new coating plant at its site in Muelheim, Germany. The plant will triple the company's capacity to produce coated pharmaceutical vials, and it now expects to manufacture around 10 million Type I plus vials per year.
The company has invested around €2.5m in its new production facility, which includes improvements to the entire processing system in order to increase delivery speeds and provide better protection for products.
Schott has been producing glass pharmaceutical packaging in Muellhheim since 1997. The products offer high-tech barrier characteristics that greatly improve resistance to chemicals and prolong the life of active agents or medications well beyond that of conventional pharmaceutical receptacles. The company specialises in this field and markets its products globally under the Schott Type I plus brand. It is currently experiencing a significant increase in demand as a result of the expansion in the field of biotechnology.
Using its own Plasma Impulse method (PICVD), Schott coats the inside walls of the vials with an extremely thin layer of silicon dioxide, resulting in a more homogeneous surface, improved barrier characteristics and higher stability for the respective medication. The plasma layer, which consists of more than 400 layers of silicon dioxide molecules (making it approximately 100 to 200 nanometres thick), reduces the potential of diffusion of metal ions and prevents protein adsorption, making fluid formulations possible.
The Type I plus is also suited for use with non-buffered solutions, such as 'water for injection purposes', due to the fact that it retains its pH value for a long period of time; even solutions with high pH values that would normally have a corrosive effect on the glass can be stored longer in Type I plus vials.
Other products displayed were premium quality Fiolax O.C. vials that are manufactured in-house. Initially they are placed inside a pharmaceutical washing machine that contains pure deionised water and washes at 70°C, before reaching an electrically powered warmth tunnel for drying and entering a plasma reactor. Up to 16 vials can be coated in a one minute cycle. The vials are packaged for processing as if they were made of normal glass, and can be filled aseptically within a cleanroom.
