FROM ABROAD

EQUIPMENT FOR THE CHEMICO-PHARMACEUTICAL

IN A MACHINERY PRODUCTS SHOW FROM ITALY

N. A . F i l i p i n

I N D U S T R Y

UDC 661.12.023:061.4(457 << 1968

Fig. 1. Automatic machinery for filling am- poules f rom the f i rm of Macchine Marzocchi Milano.

About 450 Italian f i rms displayed samples of thei r products at a machinery products show held In Mos- cow September 5~18, 1968.

Samples of equipment of in te res t to the chemieo-pharmaeeut ica l industry were demonst ra ted among the exhibits in the show. A short descr ip t ion of some of them is given in this a r t i c le .

The Model M/2 Automatic Machine for Filling Ampoules f rom the F i rm of Macehine Marzocchi Milano (Fig. 1). This automatic machine is intended for opening closed ampoules, filling them with a measured dose of an injection solution, and sealing and packing the finished ampoules into a box. It i s a ro to r type machine with units located at the pe r iphery of the ro to r that a re used for car ry ing out the p r o c e s s opera- t ions according to the technological p roce s s involved.

The empty closed ampoules a re supplied f rom a bin with push rods into the removable housings of the holding devices on the ro tor , which can turn about their own axis and are inclined by 180 ~ to the radial ly ver t ica l plane of the ro to r . With each turn of the ro tor , four ampoules a re simultaneously fed into the opera- ting units of the automatic machine. The opened ampoules a re del ivered af ter f i r s t making a notch for the capi l lary with a rotat ing cutting disc at a point on the ampoules below the capi l lary.

The filling unit of the automatic machine is a system of piston d i spensers by which a dose of the in- ject ion solution and a cer ta in amount of an iner t gas a re introduced into the ampoule through the double needle of the d ispenser . The ampoules a re filled in an iner t gas a tmosphere under a t ransparen t cas ingat whose entrance and exit an techambers with gas je ts have been installed to prevent the surrounding a i r f rom entering tl~e filling zone.

The filled ampoules a re sealed by drawing out the capi l lary of the rotat ing ampoule with special slid- Ing forceps .

The filled and sealed ampoules a re packed into an interchangeable box; the box interchange is made without interrupt ing the machinery . The drive mecha- nism of the automatic machinery is equipped with a var iable ra t io t r an s fo rmer . Ampoules with volumes of 1 to 10 ml can be handled by the automatic machi- nery .

Product ivi ty (in ampoules pe r h) 2500-3500 Power of the e lec t r ic motor for

the drive mechanism (in hp) 0.5 Power of the e lec t r ic motor for

the cutting disc (in hp) 0.1 Weight of the machinery (in kg) 500

A set of equipment used to produce ampoules, which the f i rm of Brevet t i CEA displayed, consisted of four machines which wash and wipe the filled am- poules, assemble the ampoules into car t r idges , check the puri ty of the solution in the ampoules, and pack the ampoules into a cardboard cor rugated inser t .

Special Planning-Construct ion Bureau of the Chemical Industry, Leningrad. Trans la ted f romKhimiko- Farmatsevt ieheski i Zhurnal, No. 3, pp. 55-63, March, 1969.

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Fig. 2. Machinery used to wash filled ampouIes and smal l bot t les , model CEA-3A-58 f rom the f i rm of Breve t t i C.E.A.

Fig. 3. Machine used for the v isual inspect ion of ampoules , model CEA-5A-58 f rom the f i r m of Breve t t i C.E.A.

The CEA-3A-58 Machinery, Used to Wash the Fil led Ampoules (Fig. 2), is intended for cleaning the outside su r faces of ampoules with vo lumes f r o m 0.5 to 10 ml before the opera t ions in which they a r e checked. The ampoules which a r e subject to the p r o c e s s i n g a r e filled in the wash bath of the mach ine ry . A continuous d i rec t s t r e a m of l i - quid is c rea ted by a pump located in the bath. The ampoules a r e m o v e d f rom the bath by a worm conveyer to a v ibra t ing inclined t rough where they a r e dr ied with hot a i r and buffing with r e in fo rced cloth t ips at the top. The product iv i ty of the machine is 15,000 ampoules pe r hour o

The clean ampoules a r e ga thered into a p las t i c dispensing pack- age and a re d i rec ted into the model CEA-4A-58 machinery, which is designed to pack the ampoules into a box in an or ienta ted manne r . The ampoules a r e loaded onto a t r ay located in the forward por t ion of the mach ine ry . The ampoules a r e de l ivered by conveyer f r o m the t r a y in- to the operat ing zone of movable vacuum-holding devices (sucking disc) which t r a n s p o r t and drop the ampoules into guide channels equipped with an or ienta t ing device . The ampoules p roceed along these channels into a box with the cap i l l a ry in the upright posi t ion. The mach ine ry p rov ides fac i l i t ies for ampoules with a capaci ty of 0.5 to 5 ml .

Product iv i ty (in ampoules p e r h) 22,000 Drive power (in hp) 3 Weight of the mach ine ry (in kg) 720

The ampoules which have been packed into a box a re fed into a machine for the visual inspect ion of the ampoules for c la r i ty of solution with r e s p e c t to mechan ica l contaminants .

The visual inspect ion is made on the model CEA-5A-58 machine (Fig. 3). The ampoules a r e fed to a manifold on the conveyer f r o m a bin with a specia l toothed g r i ppe r . Before scanning it, the ampoule is set into a r o t a r y motion by a s y s t e m of ro l l e r s , as a r e su l t of which the solution in the ampoule is a lso agi tated. At the moment of inspection, the ampoule is a r r e s t e d . The optical sys tem, which includes p r e l i m i n a r y i l - lumination, a lens, and a def lector , p e r m i t s the i n s p e c t o r - o p e r a t o r to detec t v is ib le impur i t i e s in the solu- t ion which is swir l ing in the ampoule . The ope ra to r can s t a r t and stop the m a c h i n e r y and r e m o v e unaccept - able ampoules f r o m the conveyer manifold by p r e s s i n g the buttons on the panel . The sui table ampoules a r e packed into packing boxes in an or ienta ted manne r .

The dr ive m e c h a n i s m of the mach ine ry is equipped with a v a r i a b l e ra t io t r a n s f o r m e r which makes it poss ib le to se lec t a specif ied speed for i t s operat ion.

The r e c o m m e n d e d product ion r a t e (in p ieces p e r h) for 1 ml ampoules is 3500, for 2 ml 3400, for 5 m l 3000, and for 10 ml 2900.

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Fig. 4. Rotary tablet press, model AR/18 from the firm of Ronchi F. LLi.

Fig. 5. Thermo-compression distil ler from the firm of Mascarini and Poncini.

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Fig. 6. Lyophi l iza t ionappara tus , model LIO D/154 f rom the f i rm ofDott Bonopace.

Fig. 7. Machinery for packing powder and g ranu la r m a t e r i a l s into packe ts made of a t he rmoadhes ive ma te r i a l , model C25/09 f rom the f i r m of I.M.A.

The m a c h i n e ' s const ruct ion pe rmi t s sc reen ing of 4200 ampoules pe r hour. I ts weight is 290 kg. I ts dr ive power is 0.5 hp.

The model CEA-1C-58 machine, which is designed to pack ampoules with vo lumes f r o m 0.5 to 10 ml and a m a x i m u m d i ame te r of up to 22 m m into t e n - c o m p a r t m e n t cor ruga ted ca rdboard inse r t s , can be used as the subsequent machine on the l ine.

A bobbin, made of a fabr ica ted cor ruga ted s t r ip into whose g rooves push rods set the ampoules , is in- s tal led onto the machine . Then the s t r ip with the ampoules is cut mechanica l ly into lengths holding ten a m - poules .

Product iv i ty (in ampoules p e r h) 2000 Dr ive power (in hp) 0.6

The f i rm of Ronchi F. LLi exhibited a r o t a r y tablet p r e s s , model AR/18 (Fig. 4) equipped with 23 s t amps up to 16 m m in d i a m e t e r . The s teel welded f r a m e w o r k of the p r e s s was designed for a p r e s s ing force of upto 10 tons, which p e r m i t s the manufac ture of tab le ts f r o m non-g ranu la r ma t e r i a l on this p r e s s . The p r e s s is equipped with two devices for dosing out g ranu la r and powdery mix tu re s .

Product iv i ty (in t ab le t s pe r h) 112,000 Dr ive power (in hp) 3.5 Weight (in kg) 1.1

The f i r m of Mascar in i and Poncini exhibited t h e r m o - c o m p r e s s i o n appa ra tu se s which produce dist i l led wa te r (Fig. 5). The a p p a r a t u s e s a r e compac t and economica l . Thus, about 6 kWin al l of e l ec t roene rgy a r e consumed for an output of 200 l i t e r / h of dis t i l led water on a d i s t i l l e r with t h e r m o - c o m p r e s s i o n aga ins t 110 kWfor a d i s t i l l e r without t h e r m o - c o m p r e s s i o n .

Lyophil izat ion appara tuses , mode l s LIO D/254 and LIO D/LR-3p , we re exhibited by the f i r m of Dott Bonapace. They a r e designed to d ry by subl imation (freeze dry) p l a sma , vaccines , s e rums , hormones , ant i - biot ics, v i tamins , and other products in ampoules , smal l bot t les , and other v e s s e l s . The appara tus (Fig. 6) i s a s s e m b l e d in a wall opening so that the door to the lyophil ization chamber opens into a s t e r i l e space. The re is a f r a m e made f r o m s ta in less s teel on the f ront pa r t of the chamber which is u s e d t o b r a c e t h e c h a m - be r to the wall. Five loading p l a t f o r m s with a charging po r t a r e fastened within the chamber . The product to be t r ea ted is loaded onto four of them~ the fifth p l a t fo rm s e r v e s to guarantee t h e r m a l equi l ibr ium for the

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functioning pla t forms. The r e s t of the assembly in the apparatus is installed within the chamber in another compartment : a condenser which is connected to the chamber through a high-vacuum baffle plate; a high evacuation assembly (a two-stage ro t a ry vacuum pump with an e lectr ic drive and an armature) ,which pro- vides a negative p r e s s u r e of about 1 �9 10 "~ to 2 �9 10 -3 mm of Hg; a device for drying the condenser (an elec- troventilator) ; a cold compres so r unit, and a unit for heating the chamber pla t forms.

Operation of the apparatus is by remote control . Cont ro l -measur ing gauges and operating equipment a re centered on the control board, which can be located up to 3 m from the chamber . The Iyophilization ap- para tuses are manufactured in var ious s izes with charac te r i s t i c s disposed between the ext reme values in- dicated below.

Number of p la t forms (in the pieces) 1 to 8 Tempera ture field of p la t forms (in deg) ,45 to + 100 Average tempera ture of condenser (in deg) -60 Water sublimed per cycle (in kg) 3 to 100 Area of operating pla t forms (in m 2) 0.14 to 12.5 Dimensions (in mm) 600 x 400 x 1400 to 1600 x 4400 x 2300

The charge for one working cycle of the LIO D/154 is: 29,820 i tems for ampoules 9 mm in diameter, 7,700 item s 18 mm in diameter , 5,220 item s for bottles 22 mm in diameter , and 120 i tems having a diameter of 87 mm and a height of 180 mm.

Specialized machinery for packing nutrit ive and chemico-pharmaceut ica l products and also for p re - paring var ious means of packing them were widely represented at the show.

The f irm of I.M.A. exhibited automatic machinery, model C25/09 (Fig. 7), for packing powders and granules into packets made from a thermoadhesive mater ia l . The automatic machinery makes the packe t s f rom a strip of the thermoadhesive material~ cuts the strip while controlling the location of the line of cut relat ive to the printing on the strip with a special device containing a photoelement; it conveys the packets in ro ta ry conveyer holders, measu re s out the product to be packaged by volume, and charges it into the packets using a movable funnel. The measur ing device is constructed so that products which possess a low fr iabi- lity can be dispensed with a high degree of accuracy . Then the packets are automatical ly sealed, are packed into boxes, and the boxes a re sealed. If it is desired, the cus tomer can eliminate the operation in which the packets a re packed in a box, and the machine will stack the packets in a pile. Thus, an entire cycle of pack- ing and boxing is accomplished by this automatic machinery.

Fig. 8. Machine used for packing plasters mod- el FCC WP from the f irm of Euros icma.

Productivi ty (in packets/min) 200 Drive power (in hp) 1.5 Larges t packet dimensions (in mm) 120 x 120

The f i rm of Euros icma exhibited the model FCC WP machine (Fig. 8) which is used for prepar ing and packing medicinal p las te rs . Bobbins for adhesive strips, gauzes, papers, or protect ive lamina and thermoadhe- sive mater ia l for making up the packing for this kind of packet are installed on the machinery . The components for the p las ter noted above, which are assembled on the bobbins, a re fed in a set order into the cutting machine which provides for cutting the p las ter with the required dimensions and configuration. After this, the finished p las te r is packed into packets made of a thermoadhesive mater ia l . A special device for perfora t ing the p las ter so that a ir exchange between the skin surface and the wound under the p las ter is ensured, can be installed on- to the machine.

Productivity (in packs per min) 70 to 300 Drive Power (in hp) 3 Dimensions (in mm) 210 x 180 x 190 Weight (in tons) 1.5

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Fig. I0. Automatic appara tus for manu- fac tur ing a e r o s o l s .

Fig. 9. The line used for filling and sealing bott les , the L inear model f rom the f i rm of Capsuli t ,

The f i r m of Capsuli t exhibited equipment for fil l ing and packing smal l bot t les . In the i r model line, Ricap is used to fill sma l l bot t les with a propor t ioned cha rge using a vacuum sys tem, and sea ls them with a luminum caps by a shea r c r i m p method of rol l ing the cap onto the bott le neck.

Product iv i ty (in bot t les pe r h) 3600 Bottle s izes (in ram)

d i ame te r 20 to 70 height (not m o r e than) 265

Input (in hp) 2 Weight (in kg) 550

The Dosacap model line was designed to fill and seal smal l bot t les with an a luminum cap housing a p las t ic eye d ropper (productivity 3000 bot t les pe r hour).

A line for filling and seal ing smal l bot t les called the L inear model (Fig. 9) cons is t s of a turn table for loading smal l bott les, an automat ic machine for p ropor t iona l ly f i l l - ing them by a vacuum sys tem, and an au tomat ic machine for sealing the bot t les with an a luminum cap by a shear c r imp method of rol l ing it onto the bott le neck using a v ibra t ion feeder for the caps, and a conveyer which l inks the l i ne ' s au tomat ic mach ines (the product iv i ty is 3000 bot t les pe r hour).

The f i rm of Fra fe l l i Zamas i , which spec ia l i zes in equipment for the pha rmaceu t i ca l industry, displayed an a s - sembly of equipment used for filling r ig id gelat in capsu les and seal ing them, a pr int ing machine for pr int ing in sc r ip - t ions onto capsules , t ab le t s and lozenges, and a line for pack- ing the r igid gelat in capsu les into bot t les . The capsu les a r e packed into bot t les and cotton is inse r t ed into them~ the bot - t les a r e sea led with an a luminum cap, labeled, and packed into c a r d b o a r d ca r tons all on this line (the product ivi ty is 3000 bot t les per hour).

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The firm of Tonazzi V. exhibited machinery, models GA-30 and GA-40, which are used to fill and seal small metal or polyethylene tubes; machinery, model RLP, used for filling small bottles, and a universal labeling machine, model EP/8, which differs by the fact that lables of any configuration can be glued onto bottles of various shapes by it.

The automatic pneumatic apparatus (Fig. 10), model Transfer 2G from the firm of Speferene Maechine, was designed to fill aerosol packages. The feeder, which supplies the packages on a step-type conveyer, the unit for cleaning the packages by blowing them out and by suction, the unit used for filling the packages with the product, the removal of air by suction, and the unit which simultaneously fills the packages with propellant and seals them are the basic units of the apparatus. The simultaneousness of the filling and seal- ing is ensured by the fact that the gripping head is built into the dosing apparatus. Four packages are simul- taneously processed in each position. All of the par ts which come into contact with the product being pro- cessed are made of stainless steel.

Productivity (in packages per h) 3000 Package contents (in ml) with respect to the product 30-350 Package contents (in ml) with respect to the gas 30-350 Package dimensions (in mm)

height 80-280 diameter 40-75

Working pressure (in atm) 8-12 Dimensions (in ram) 2700x 1000x 1700 Weight (in kg) 750

The complete absence of electrical blocks both in the drive mechanism and in the control system, which ensures against there being an explosion hazard, is a distinguishing characterist ic of the apparatus.

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