West, a US-based developer and manufacturer of components and systems for injectable drug delivery, has introduced its B.safe syringe safety system to the market.
West acquired the IP and rights to this system in 2011 and has completed the product development and first phase of commercial scale-up at its safety systems manufacturing centre in France. The firm says significant scale-up to high-volume manufacturing will be achieved in the first half of 2013.
The system is designed to help protect against needlestick injury when using a prefilled syringe and will complement West’s portfolio of prefilled syringes and technologies. West’s products include the NovaGuard passive needle system for Luer Lock syringes and the eris system, of which more than 1 billion units have been manufactured and used in the market.
‘We are delighted to reach this significant milestone and be in a position to offer our customers a globally available safety system, leveraging our established expertise around prefilled syringes and needle safety,’ said Glenn Thorpe, vice president, Strategic Market Development, Syringe Systems.
‘With the completion of the steps necessary to offer this system commercially, we are in a position to meet growing market demand in this area, and are pleased to have already signed our first commercial agreement and commenced shipments.’
The B.safe active safety system is suitable for staked and insert needle prefilled syringes. It is compatible with a range of ISO-compliant prefilled syringes (glass or polymer) and available in 0.5mL and 1mL versions. The system is designed for syringes with a rigid needle shield. Minimal force is applied to the syringe flange during assembly and activation and assembly is outside the filling area.
West says the design mitigates against glass flange breakage and the system is tamper-resistant.