Making productivity sustainable with Pharma 4.0
David Bean , Solutions Group Manager at Mitsubishi Electric looks at how industrial automation can improve the environmental footprint of pharmaceutical manufacturing activities .
Smart pharmaceutical manufacturing can do more than drive up productivity . It can transform the lives of patients by providing access to high-quality medicines while also improving the sustainability of operations and contributing to net zero policies . As a result , pharmaceutical companies can help to protect both people and the environment .
The future of pharmaceutical manufacturing , also known as Pharma 4.0 , is based on data-driven technologies . These can generate in-depth knowledge on processes and activities , share this information with key equipment and automatically act upon this intelligence in real-time to optimise entire production lines .
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This digital transformation of pharmaceutical operations can make businesses more lean and agile , delivering key opportunities in a number of areas beyond the shopfloor . In particular , smart manufacturing can help companies improve their environmental footprint .
The pharmaceutical industry is considered a major emitter , producing 55 % more greenhouse gases than the automotive sector ( 1 ). As a result , businesses in this market will need to invest in key actions to help facilitate their journey to net zero . Digital transformation technologies offer a unique opportunity to support net zero policies with quick ROIs . In addition to forming a gateway to green manufacturing , they can also enhance the competitiveness of pharmaceutical manufacturers in a demanding marketplace , making digitalisation a particularly appealing strategy .
Pharma 4.0 is green Well-designed automation solutions can optimise resource utilisation , reducing both waste and rework . Mitsubishi Electric ’ s specialist teams have supported a multitude of projects in the pharmaceutical and life sciences sectors , delivering improvements using customised automated systems . For example , smart process control solutions and robotics can improve yield and process performance whilst reducing energy consumption and thus improve manufacturing sustainability metrics .
These technologies can also reduce emissions , production time and costs , which in turn benefits both businesses and patients . In effect , it is estimated that Pharma 4.0 will save 30 minutes per year for each clinical trial patient and cost savings for customers of £ 1 billion are expected ( 2 ).
As the manufacture of increasingly advanced treatments and medical equipment becomes more expensive and resource intensive , the utilisation of automation offers pharmaceutical companies an opportunity to thrive . By leveraging state-of-the-art components , such as Mitsubishi Electric ’ s range of robots , controllers , drives , HMIs and MaisartTM based AI technologies , businesses can meet ambitious environmental goals while creating highly responsive production facilities .
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