At this year’s PPMA Total Show in Birmingham, Romaco will demonstrate how its Noack N 760 blister packaging machine manufactures blister packs from PET mono-material. The PVC-free PET/PET blisters reduce the carbon footprint of the end product. What’s more, they offer equivalent barrier properties to PVC/aluminium blisters when used as an alternative for products currently packaged in this way.
The field of pharmaceutical packaging is one of many in which sustainability is rising to the top of the agenda. Around the world, packaging and film manufacturers are carrying out research into alternatives to the standard PVC and aluminium blister packaging commonly used across the globe. These are made of laminate comprising several layers of plastic and aluminium – a complex mix of materials that cannot be sorted or recycled after use and which is therefore incompatible with the circular economy. Blister packs with a forming and lidding foil of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) offer a more sustainable solution. This mono-material is approved for use in the primary packaging of pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals, and can also be recycled.
At the PPMA Total Show, Romaco will demonstrate the machinability of the innovative One-Material Blister foil (OMB™) from Liveo Research on its Noack N 760 blister packaging machine. The PET One-Material Blister foil has been certified recyclable by the TCEP (Tray Circularity Evaluation Platform). Moreover, when used for products currently packaged in PVC/aluminium blisters, the PET/PET blisters boast equivalent barrier properties to their PVC/aluminium counterparts, facilitating the switch to this eco-friendlier alternative. And when it comes to pushing the tablets through the lidding foil, the PET/PET blisters are entirely as user-friendly as the conventional blister packs. Additionally, the significantly lower weight of the PET/PET blisters also puts them ahead environmentally.
In four-lane operation, the Noack N 760 platen sealing machine achieves a maximum output of 150 sustainable PET/PET blisters per minute. An international pharmaceutical group is already marketing painkillers in primary packaging made of PET OMB™ from Liveo Research.
N 760 blister packaging machine by Romaco Noack
The N 760 by Romaco Noack is an intermittent motion blister packaging machine in balcony design for universal use. It is perfect for packaging a very broad range of products from solid dosage forms, ampoules and medical devices to semi-solids. Blisters with a maximum forming area of 155 x 138 mm and a maximum forming depth of 25 mm can be produced in this way. Product changes can be carried out quickly and easily, because only a very few compact and lightweight format parts need to be replaced and all parameters are electronically stored.
The N 760 has an exceptionally space-saving layout and is easy to operate, fulfilling all of the requirements of the contract packaging sector, which needs to respond quickly and flexibly at any time to dynamic market situations. With a maximum output of up to 200 blisters per minute, the technology is mainly deployed to produce smaller batch sizes in the low to medium speed segment. The product feeding unit is available in different configurations and is either manual or fully automatic, for example when used with high-tech systems for demanding products or multi-dose blisters.
The electrical cabinet can be swung out, meaning the N 760 is readily accessible for maintenance work. Furthermore, the extremely short foil web from the forming station to the die-cutter restricts the amount of waste while running in and retooling the machine to a minimum. Users have the option of connecting the N 760 blister packaging machine to a cartoner and a case packer. Last but not least, the N 760 blister packaging machine from Romaco is compatible with all the format parts of its predecessor, the Noack DPN 760.
On show from 23 to 25 September 2025 at the PPMA Total Show in Birmingham, UK, NEC, Hall 5, Stand E100.
For more information on Romaco, visit our website: www.romaco.com
