Sepha, a Northern Ireland-based pharmaceutical engineering company, says it has secured several significant new orders from pharmaceutical multinationals, in particular, Novartis, for its Visionscan leak inspection machine.
Visionscan is part of a range of innovative machines that use high resolution imaging technology to detect product defects in pharmaceutical blister packs.
The firm says it is the world’s first tool-less, non-destructive inspection machine for detecting leaks in pharmaceutical blister packs and the new contracts with these global customers, including Jansen USA, is a progressive achievement for the Sepha team, who designed and developed the machine at the firm’s r&d facility in Belfast.
Since its launch last year, Sepha has achieved sold Visionscan machines in all its major global markets including the US, Brazil, India, Europe and New Zealand.
Paul Kelly, head of sales and marketing at Sepha, said: ‘Over the last five years there have been considerable changes in global pharmaceutical production, with significant production cost-saving measures implemented by most large drug producers. We developed our new range in response to these changes.
‘Visionscan enables pharmaceutical manufacturers to lower their production costs significantly while at the same time improving their quality levels.’
The machine, a mobile, table-top device, uses the latest camera imaging technology to offer a flexible and reliable cost saving alternative to destructive blister pack test methods such as blue dye. It is easy to use and requires no tooling, making it suitable for large volume pharmaceutical manufacturers and packagers where high levels of quality and cost control as well as multiple product changes are required. Visionscan can detect channel leaks and weak seals down to 15 micron and has a simple touchscreen operator interface.
