Medical Device Link.

Originally Published PMPN March 2004

Show Coverage

Now in its 25th year, Interphex continues to promote innovation and stimulate business with its educational conferences and wide range of exhibits. The show, which takes place March 16–18 at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City, will provide attendees with the tools they need to increase productivity and collaborate effectively with partners and regulators. 

Interphex combines four colocated shows: PharmaDiscovery, PharmaSourcing and Services, PharmaIT, and PharmaManufacturing. The PharmaDiscovery show is a forum for scientific inquiry and solutions, where attendees will find conferences and exhibits from discovery to Phase III clinical trials. Conference sessions are sponsored by Drug Discovery & Development.

Attendees at the PharmaSourcing and Services show can meet with more than 100 leading contract service providers. An all-day conference program, developed by The Society of Life Science Professionals (ISPE), opens with a state-of-the-industry address by James Miller, founder and president, PharmaSource Information Services.

PharmaIT, produced by the Institute for International Research, offers a variety of exhibits and educational sessions to provide CIOs, IT specialists, and others with strategies for implementing and integrating the latest computer and networking technologies.
The PharmaManufacturing exhibits will allow attendees to test innovative solutions from more than 500 leading suppliers. ISPE has developed a conference featuring technical sessions, case studies, and forums that provide in-depth coverage of the industry’s most advanced technologies and productive manufacturing strategies.

This year’s featured event takes place on Tuesday, March 16, at 9 a.m. The panel discussion is titled “What to Expect from the FDA and How it Will Impact Pharmaceutical Manufacturing: A Conversation with Dr. Janet Woodcock, Director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER).” Justin O. Neway, PhD, executive vice president and chief science officer, Aegis Analytical Corp., will moderate the event. Other panel participants include Michael Warmuth, divisional VP, corporate quality operations, Abbott; Ulrich Rudow, VP worldwide engineering and real estate, Johnson & Johnson Corporate; Fabrizio Bonanni, Dr. Chem., senior VP, manufacturing, Amgen Inc.; and Clive Bennett, president, Patheon N.A.

For more information about Interphex, visit www.interphex.com. 

Exhibitor Products

Tablet Counter

A new, low-cost electronic counter for tablets/capsules will be on display at the show. The DT Swiftpack Quantum electronic counter offers ease of use and accuracy as well as quick delivery. This compact 12-track machine has no change parts. For cleaning purposes, all contact parts can be quickly removed without using tools. The company’s optical counting technology eliminates miscounts and provides a user-friendly interface, including touch screen and memory storage of product parameters. DT Packaging Systems, Leominster, MA; 978/227-1185; dtpssales@dtindustries.com. 
Booth #250

Outsert System

A company has introduced an outsert system to help with FDA compliance. The MV-2001 produces outserts that are 50% larger and 20% more compressed than those produced by the company’s other systems. The outserts contain up to 120 panels at 20% higher speeds (up to 10,000 cycles per hour). The machine is electronically controlled for ease of setup, operation, and changeovers. It is equipped with a modem for off-site diagnostic analysis. The system also spot glues to keep the outsert intact for easy insertion and for affixing directly onto containers, eliminating the necessity and cost of a carton or additional packaging. Vijuk Equipment Inc., Elmhurst, IL; 630/530-2203; www.vijukequip.com. 
Booth #2073

Coders

A company offers multilane coding systems that are easy to install. The SmartTraverse product line provides a digital package coding solution for multilane packaging line applications. They are designed to run 24 hours a day, seven days a week. These traversing units can easily be integrated with the SmartDate thermal transfer coder or SmartLase laser coder. They use an intelligent servomotor drive system. The SmartTraverse 1 provides accurate positioning and velocity control. Print registration to the package is independent from the packaging line with several print registration options available for complex requirements. The system features a text-based screen interface and is designed for use on dedicated multilane applications. Added features include a touch screen user interface with teach capabilities for setting print registration as well as other menus that allow the user to set application parameters. Markem Corp., Keene, NH; 603/352-1130; www.markem.com. 
Booth #364

Foil

A specialty foil that deters crime and provides product authentication is available for blister packaging. The company’s Protecco anti-counterfeiting blister foil program offers security features that help to guarantee the authenticity of products to patients as well as throughout the distribution chain. Protecco can be customized with holographic or Guilloche patterns using a customer’s logo, raster functions, UV light fluorescent features, rainbow gratings, and micro-image type. These elements can be varied and customized, and they can also be covert or overt. Hueck Foils LLC, Wall, NJ; 732/974-4100; info@hueckfoils.com. 
Booth #834

Bottles

A company has reintroduced the 40-oz size to its proprietary line of amber glass bottles. The size is one of seven bottles in the line that has the same 28-240 finish. The matching cap and PolySeal patented inner liner provide a secure seal. The caps are available in black and white, or a range of customized colors. Silk screening of corporate logos is also available. O.Berk Co., Union, NJ; 908/851-9500; www.oberk.com. 
Booth #158

Ink Jet Printers

A compact single and multiline ink jet printer is available for printing cartons, trays, sacks, and various other products. Features of the Codajet 5000 include a choice of six print models from one modular unit. Each model allows for a different character height and is easily upgradeable from single-line to multiline to accommodate changes in product marketing requirements. These units print at speeds up to 35 m/min. They offer a sealed-membrane keyboard mounted on a stainless steel housing with pictorial keys that enable instant access to each specific function for simple message entry and editing. The units allow for coding of date, date offset for sell-by dates, time, sequential numbering, product counting, automatic shift codes, and multiple languages, and can store up to 50 messages. Each Codejet 5000 is shipped complete with internal adjustable air pump, mounting bracket, ink system separate from the electronics, bottle holder, and 1-L bottle of ink and cleaner. Griffin-Rutgers Company, Inc., Ronkonkoma, NY; 800/237-6713; www.griffin-rutgers.com. 
Booth #255

Closures and Containers

A company’s standard screw closures have unscrewed threads that allow for good retention torques. The packaging is aesthetically pleasing because it does not bulge. The closures are available lined or with a linerless plug seal. Designed for SP–410 finishes, the 20-mm closures complement the company’s CC1 family of dispensing closures. They feature a matted finish and ribbed walls. Rexam Closures & Containers, Evansville, IN; 812/867-6671; www.rexam.com/closures. 
Booth #274

Checkweighers

A checkweigher has a special intermittent, servo-driven starwheel configuration so it can accurately weigh hard-to-handle pharmaceutical packages at high speeds. The Starweigh accepts round or oval containers from 0.75 to 6.5 in. diam., loads them into a starwheel pocket, indexes them, weighs them, and rejects off-weight containers. It can weigh up to 400 packages per min. with an accuracy of 15 mg. The checkweigher accepts a wide range of bottles, plastic, metal, glass, and other hard-to-handle pharmaceutical containers and can weigh packages up to 200 g. The Starweigh mounts over the user’s existing conveyor, which simplifies installation and eliminates the need for line cutting. Hi-Speed Checkweigher Company, Inc., Ithaca, NY; 607/257-6000; hispeed@mt.com. 
Booth #737

Films

A line of heat-seal coated vinyl films provides a destructive seal with good package clarity properties for product visibility and a pilfer-proof closure. Pentaseal SF1 films combine the high clarity of light-gauge vinyl packaging films with the permanent bond strength of traditional lidding materials. The films also provide good processability, which is suitable for high-speed form-fill-seal machinery. Plans to expand the line to include polyester and other light-gauge base films are in development. Klöckner Pentaplast of America Inc., Gordonsville, VA; 540/832-3600; www.kpfilms.com. 
Booth #1637

Printers

A company provides on-demand thermal bar code and RFID printing solutions to track items throughout the supply chain. Print engines, high-resolution and wide-label printers, desktop-size printers, and mobile printers are used to print anything from product identification, cartons, chemical drums, and shipping compliance labels to receiving labels and reduced space symbology packaging labels. The company also offers smart label printing/encoding solutions to help customers with their RFID and electronic product code compliance initiatives. These include technologies like R110 Alchemy, an RFID print, convert, and apply engine that will allow the user to selectively create smart labels on demand from labeling material already in use. Zebra Technologies International LLC, Vernon Hills, IL; 847/634-6700; www.zebra.com. 
Booth #2868

Heat Sealer

A medical grade heat sealer is suitable for short and long batch runs. The CBS-DM is equipped with fully validatable controls and constructed to ensure the best sanitary environment. Features include a quick- change sealing section and band replacement that make the machine quick to set up for a batch run. Other features include single-point gap adjustment, bag-top control, and heating and cooling bars. Horizontal and vertical formats accommodate all product presentations. SIG Doboy, New Richmond, WI; 715/246-6511; www.doboy.com. 
Booth #381

Vision Systems

Machine vision sensors have the ability to read composite symbology in addition to reduced space symbology codes on pharmaceutical packages. In-Sight vision sensors are high-performance, on-line inspection devices used in a variety of pharmaceutical applications, including optical character verification, 2D code reading, and blister pack inspection as well as label and tamper-evident safety-seal inspection. Each sensor provides field-proven vision software tools; a vision spreadsheet interface for fast, easy application setup; and built-in Ethernet. Cognex Corp., Natick, MA; 508/650-3000; www.cognex.com. 
Booth #1867

Sterile Filling Services

An FDA-approved full-service partner to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies specializes in sterile filling and finishing processes for aseptically prefilled systems, such as syringes and cartridges. Services include packaging and process development, including lyophilization, small-scale and commercial manufacturing, and chemical and microbiological analysis. The firm, founded in 1950, is an independent privately held company with more than 1000 employees, holding more than 127 patents in the described business field. Vetter Pharma–Fertigung GmbH & Co. KG, Ravensburg, Germany, +49 751 3700 0; www.vetter-group.de. 
Booth #C2522 

Partial List of Exhibitors
Current as of January 26, 2004
Advertisers listed in bold type

Alcan Packaging–Contract Pkg & Specialty Cartons C1814 
Alcoa Flexible Packaging C1505 
Arlington Press Inc. 565 
Banner Engineering Corp. 347 
Baxter Pharmaceuticals C1506 
BD Pharmaceutical Systems 584 
Bell-Mark Corp. 360
Bosch Packaging Technology 445 
Cardinal Health C1305 
Challenge Printing E137
Cognex Corp. 1867 
Colonial Carton Co. 279 
Comar Inc. 474 
Desiccare Inc. 281 
DT Packaging Systems 250 
DVT Corp. 2290 
Fisher Clinical Services C1718
Griffin-Rutgers Co. 255 
Harro Hoefliger Pkg. Systems 655 
Healthcare Compliance Packaging Council 264 
Hi-Speed Checkweigher Co. 737
Honeywell 698 
Hueck Foils LLC 834 
Hypex Inc. 358
Klöckner Pentaplast 1637 
Körber Medipak Inc. 273 
Kurz Transfer Products 460
Label Vision Systems Inc. 355 
Markem Corp. 364 
Multisorb Technologies Inc. 150 
Multivac Inc. 660 
National Instrument Co. 357 
Newman Labeling Systems Inc. 674 
The Nosco Printing Group 681 
O.Berk Co. 158 
Optima Machinery Corp. 473 
Perlen Converting 462
Pharmaceutical & Medical 
Packaging News 245 
PharmaGraphics Inc. 587 
Product Identification and Processing Systems 263 
Quintiles C2418
Rao Design Engineering 551
Remmele Engineering 2737
Rexam Closures 274 
Romaco Inc. 1119 
Ropack Inc. C1319 
Sharp Corp. C1622 
SIG Doboy 383 
Steris Corp. 519 
Süd-Chemie Performance Packaging 463 
Systech Solutions Inc. 668
Tolas Healthcare Packaging C2313 
Uhlmann Packaging Systems 1845 
Unicep Packaging Inc. 361 
Vetter Pharma C2522
Videojet Technologies Inc. 673B 
Vijuk Equipment Inc. 2073 
Weiler Engineering 348
Zebra Technologies 2868 

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