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The line produces pharmaceutical pellets containing the active ingredients in capsules
Crucial temperature control in pharma manufacturing
HRS Heat Exchangers have helped a leading Australian pharmaceutical company expand its production capacity by supplying a bespoke system which controls the temperature of solution materials used in capsule manufacturing .
Ella Taghavi , Technical Sales Engineer at HRS Heat Exchangers
All text and images courtesy of HRS
Mayne Pharma , a listed Australian company , commercialises branded and generic pharmaceuticals in a range of product areas . Its GMP accredited manufacturing facility is located in Salisbury , South Australia , approximately 12 miles from Adelaide , where it produces tablets , capsules , liquids and creams . Capsules are a popular method of drug delivery , comprising of two-piece dissolvable outer shell containing miniature pellets which carry the active ingredients . The pellets are prepared using a fluid bed dryer in order to reduce moisture content and are sometimes spray-coated with a solution containing key ingredients . The spray-coating solutions use an alcohol-based formulation to ensure correct mixing and maintenance of the fundamental chemical properties . The solutions must be prepared and applied within a tight temperature range .
The challenge Mayne Pharma wanted to expand and upgrade its existing production capacity for capsule production by adding a third fluid bed dryer and the associated equipment , whilst simultaneously improving temperature regulation to its existing lines . HRS Heat Exchangers was asked to provide a quotation for a hot water heater to support the new line , but quickly realised that a turnkey package offering active heating or cooling as required would provide a much better solution . “ The alcohol for the solutions is drawn from our outside tank farm ,” a spokesperson for Mayne Pharma explained . “ One of the issues with the old systems was that on hot days the factory had to wait for the alcohol to cool down before mixing the solutions , which could sometimes take hours . The HRS solution means that we can actively cool it if we need to . Alternatively , if we bring in the alcohol on a cold day , we can heat it up as necessary .”
The solution The solution produced by HRS is a heater / cooler with the ability to reduce hours of cooling time to less than 60 minutes . Due to space constraints in the existing factory and the requirement to connect various pieces of equipment , the unit was supplied on a compact skid with integrated controls and automation of both heating and cooling processes . Other challenges faced by HRS Engineers were uncertainties about heat transfer in the existing tanks and having to overcome unknown pressure losses in a small jacket annulus which would otherwise affect the performance of the unit .
28 Heat Exchanger World October 2022 www . heat-exchanger-world . com