IMA Safe has recently developed a new medium-speed packaging line for topical drug products. Production began in 2009 and the new line is mainly intended for Japan. The Japanese market has the highest quality and cosmetic standards in the world, and demands a production and distribution process that can guarantee total customer satisfaction.

The new packaging cycle consists of the loading of small aluminium tubes, containing 5, 10 and 30-ml doses of the drug, and relative application cannula, into each pack, specifically designed to make the product content fully visible from the outside so that it can easily be read by elderly patients. The packs are then collected into a cardboard container, also specially designed in order to offer maximum protection for the contents, with enough room for the information leaflet, placed either on top of or alongside the packs. The special tear-off opening transforms the container into a display box so that all 10 packs can be seen from the outside and easily removed by the patient.

At the end of the cycle, the containers are loaded automatically into a large American-type box and placed in a "big box", a crate that offers maximum protection even during long sea voyages.

The utmost attention has been paid to making the drug easy for patients to use, and also to sustainability: the packaging is eco-friendly and is completely safe, easy to use, and protective.

The packaging cycle is completed by an IMA Safe Dynamica SM cartoning machine followed by a checkweigher, a second IMA Safe Easy cartoner and finally a case packer integrated with the IMA Safeline CP18 Miniflex palletizer.

IMA Safe designed the complete line to fit into the very limited space available with no possibility of expansion, thus sparing the customer the expense of major building works and ensuring that all materials could be moved easily, in accordance with safety regulations at all times.

This was possible thanks to the compact size of the IMA Safe machines, integrated with robotized orientation and feeder units (again manufactured by IMA Safe) that are also compact but can process any type of size or product while being extremely accessible for the operator.

The line incorporates a series of quality checks, all integrated into each machine: checks on the integrity of the cannula, the presence of the cannula and the tube inside the pack, barcode readers, presence of the information leaflet, a barcode reader for the packs and containers, OCR reading of the variable pack data and other information found on the final container.

IMA cartoning machines are able to process these special glossy-finish packs with internal separators and a large display window. Great attention has been paid to the feeder units, designed for components that are very different but also very delicate, such as the tube and cannula. The high precision insertion process means that the cannula is placed in the separator, thus avoiding cosmetic damage to the pack itself – all in accordance with GMPs and safety regulations.

IMA Safe is attentive to the need for customisation in the cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries and has always been dedicated to the design and manufacture of packaging lines. This strategic decision requires the presence of a skilled team of specialised designers who work closely with clients wanting to launch innovative packaging solutions.

About IMA SAFE srl - Packaging Solutions
IMA Safe is the only manufacturer able to offer complete solutions for the primary and secondary packaging of pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and food products. IMA Safe offers the most comprehensive range of blister-packaging machines in the world, starting from low speed through to very high speed (up to 1,300 blisters per minute), including the low-speed machines produced by Precision Gears (India). The offer includes the counting machines designed by IMA Safe Nova (USA) and IMA Safe Swiftpack (UK), the tube fillers produced by IMA Safe Co.ma.di.s., and the IMA Safe horizontal and vertical cartoning machines. IMA Safe Line offers a complete range of end-of-line machinery including winders, bundlers, case packers and palletizers.