IMA Group explores how intelligent control systems, product recovery technologies and brushless motors are helping pharmaceutical manufacturers reduce waste, lower energy consumption and improve production efficiency.
IMA Group
The growing demand for pharmaceutical products and the need to monitor and improve the impact of production plants on energy consumption are pushing machine manufacturers towards increasingly efficient equipment to be built with a smaller environmental footprint. The development of new technologies available to the industry and continuous process improvements allow these requirements to be met. To this end, several features have been designed for capsule-filling machines to meet the need for sustainability. Among these, a central role is played by control procedures (capsule weighing and efficient feeding checks), alongside the possibilities offered by new technologies (current monitoring and energy recovery) and new technical process developments.
Pharmaceutical capsule manufacturing is currently undergoing a transformation, driven by the global need to make processes more sustainable and efficient. The integration of intelligent technologies, advanced control systems and energy recovery solutions is redefining production standards, reducing waste and improving batch quality. These factors have allowed us to take action at different levels throughout the capsule-filling process.
Capsule checks
IMA Group
Capsule presence and opening control systems check that each capsule bottom is correctly positioned and ready for filling. Based on mechanical sensors or probes, the device can detect any missing or unopened capsules, identifying their location and incident frequency; this information allows any problem to be traced back to its cause. For example, repeated failure to detect a capsule in one same position is caused by a blockage in the feeding channels: once the cause (damaged or deformed capsules) is removed, production can be restored to maximum efficiency.
These systems can be combined with a device to detect the correct position of the capsule bottom inside its bushing; this check can be performed optically or mechanically. Any positioning different from the expected position can lead to dosing issues (missed or partial dosing), to closing a non-compliant capsule, to repeated incidents and to damaging delicate machine components. Preventing this from happening allows machine top performance to be preserved, while also shortening production times.
Selective dosing
Thanks to a system that detects one or more capsules missing in one segment, the operator can decide not to dose any product into the capsules of that entire row - avoiding any waste of raw materials. In this way, it is possible to significantly reduce expensive product waste by optimising filling, while at the same time keeping the work area clean by avoiding dispersion.
Feedback weight control
Feedback weight control is an essential element to ensure repeatability and quality in capsule filling. The weighing technology in the statistical gross, total gross or total net weight control configuration is gravimetric and directly measures the product mass. The weighing scale signal is used to automatically adjust the filling parameters, typically in the case of volumetric dosing (powders, pellets and liquids). Alongside gravimetric control procedures, there are other count-based tests for discrete materials, micro-tablets and tablets: these only verify dosing accuracy. With feedback control, it is possible to self-regulate the process even in the case of multiple product filling, with fewer manual operation requirements, ensuring a stable and efficient production cycle.
Recovery of residual product
After each batch is processed, a common finding is some product left in the tanks, hoppers or plates used to prepare the doses. In the specific case of pharmaceutical powder, to prevent any residue from being wasted, there is an auxiliary device that automatically causes any remaining product to build up in the dosing tank and conveys it to a dedicated sector, where it can be collected and used to fill more capsules. Product recovery occurs at low speed, but avoids wasting expensive material and improves the overall performance of the production cycle.
Brushless motors: monitoring load parameters
The introduction of brushless motors has opened the way to advanced and more flexible machine functions. In addition to upgraded technical features, it has resulted in increased process efficiency: real-time monitoring of actuator load parameters helps the early identification of faults, unwanted friction or potential failures. This technology makes it possible to perform predictive maintenance, identifying defects before they are past their critical threshold and consequently reducing machine downtime due to service requirements.
Brushless motors: regenerated energy
Brushless technology has also introduced a further element promoting sustainability through the ability to exchange energy. During the braking phase, a motor can recover energy which, instead of being dissipated, is used to power another actuator. This results in an overall reduction in energy consumption and a lower thermal impact on the machine and consequently, on the production plant.
Brushless motors: process optimisation
A further step towards reducing consumption was taken by leveraging the flexibility granted by brushless motors. Depending on each product requirements, it may be necessary to change the speed of the interaction between the dosing parts and the product: with traditional technologies it is necessary to proportionally change the machine speed and consequently, the downtime. Brushless technology has made it possible to minimise downtime (by maximising process phase speed rates) and adapt other process times to product requirements. This is the case, for example, with the dosing of micro-tablets, where the hold time of the conveyor system depends on the product filling quantity, while capsule feeding maximum speed can always be maintained from one station to the next. In this way, the overall batch production time can be minimised - reducing total energy consumption.
Conclusions
In conclusion, the sustainability aspect in the field of capsule-filling machines has become a topic of ever-increasing interest and touches on various aspects inherent to the filling process. The introduction of control procedures, product recovery devices and brushless technology all had a significant impact: all of these elements contribute primarily to making the use of pharmaceutical products more efficient and secondly to reducing production times and consumption.