cHemicalS & pHaRmaceuticalS
to automatically highlight defects or faulty products. Better still, we can look at improved ways of streamlining the means of presenting products to these MV systems, with complete control integration between both the motion and vision systems.
No automatioN witHout movEmENt It sounds self-evident but is often over- looked that automated processes require customised movements. This is why Beckhoff has developed a revolutionary motion control system that moves products in a completely frictionless manner. The technology is based on electromagnetic fields, on which planes levitate in freely programmable directions. The system is called XPlanar and consists
of three main components: the movers, the tiles that make up a floor for them and the Beckhoff TwinCAT3 automation software. The tiles can be arranged to fit any space requirements and the movers can be programmed to turn, wait, park or move in any direction. They have a stainless-steel surface as standard but can be fitted with contains to carry medicines, glasses or vials. The principal advantage for the
pharmaceutical industry is that the movers provide for a noiseless, frictionless and jerk- free movement. These characteristics are important when integrating a motion system with quality control automation. A further important factor is that since every mover is independent, it ensures that the contents of one mover do not come into contact with products on a different one, which opens up possibilities of combining products more flexibly, for instance during packaging. The movers can carry up to six
kilograms, or even more if they are combined. The planes can tilt by up to five degrees or lift and lower themselves by up to five centimetres. All these movements can be programmed flexibly to suit production or quality inspection criteria. If required, the movers can also travel up walls or on ceilings. The maximum speed is set at four meters per second and can accelerate up to 20 m/s2
. The flexibility that XPlanar introduces to
motion control means it is ideally suited for the quality assurance requirements of the pharmaceutical sector. Unlike most existing motion systems, XPlanar is flexible enough to suit MV quality control systems and create a reliable automated flow of products through the system. Frictionless movement means that liquids do not slosh over. XPlanar can be flexibly reprogrammed to suit future challenges, which makes it the ideal motion system for the production, inspection and packaging of COVID-19 vaccines and any other medicines of the future.
Beckhoff Automation
www.beckhoff.co.uk
UKManufacturing Summer 2021 35
HRS Heat excHangeRS Help global vaccine effoRt
used by different manufacturers of coronavirus vaccines around the world. The orders have been placed by subcontractors
H
working with Pfizer, Moderna, and Oxford Astra Zeneca: three of the major global COVID-19 vaccine developers. The orders are for heat exchangers for use in the UK and Europe and cover different areas of the vaccine manufacturing process. HRS SP05 heat exchangers will be used for heating
purified water and Water for Injection (WFI) which is used as make-up water in the vaccine formulation. The HRS SP Series of pharmaceutical heat exchangers is widely recognised as being ideal for WFI applications due to its high-quality pharmaceutical grade manufacturing. As well as the SP Series, the orders also include K Series heat exchangers for heating cleaning- in-place (CIP) solution which is used to clean the manufacturing equipment between the processing of different batches of vaccine. Due to the importance of Coronavirus vaccine manufacture and the need to ramp up
production volumes quickly around the world, the orders specified tight delivery timescales which HRS has been able to meet. In such a critical application, the quality of materials and manufacturing tolerances is crucial, with controlled tube roughness and certified materials used for traceability throughout all HRS pharma grade heat exchangers. HRS International sales and marketing director Matt Hale comments, “Because of our range of
pharmaceutical heat exchangers we have existing relationships with a number of subcontractors working with the companies producing COVID vaccines, so it was natural that they would look to use proven equipment from a trusted partner as they help their clients expand their production capacities. We are delighted to have played our own, albeit small, part in helping the world manage this pandemic.”
www.hrs-heatexchangers.com
RS Heat Exchangers has received orders for pharmaceutical heat exchangers which will be
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