Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/678483
Tablets & Capsules May 2016 21 with the machine." Changeovers occur about every 2 days, and have gotten faster. "The first month when we were getting used to it, it would take about an hour and 20 minutes. But after a few months we're doing it in 35 or 40 minutes." To squeeze more production out of the line, NeoCell linked part of it to an adjacent operation that pack- ages powders into 3-pound-capacity jars. "On the half of the line after the retorquer, we added a second table. So when we have production on the line for powders, we can do the labeling and the neck banding from that point on. If we're running pow- der, then the first half of the [new] packaging line is idle," he said. There were some bugs to work out with the powder labeling station, but Barragan was pleased with Capmatic's support. "They're quick to react. They show up here and they get it done. It's very good customer service." And production is up by 90 per- cent, he said. "This new line allevi- ates a lot of problems. Now I can actually have some product in stock." T&C Capmatic, Montreal, PQ, Canada. Tel. 514 322 0062 Website: www.capmatic.com The new line was installed in September 2015 and works as promised. It requires just two opera- tors. "Before we had about seven peo- ple because a lot of things had to be done by hand," Barragan said. That included putting the cotton in bottles and torqueing the caps. "A machine was supposed to be doing that, but it wasn't." The new line makes quality con- trol easier, too. "The metal detection unit covers pretty much every safety concern that we might have for cont- amination." Previously, metal check- ing was done manually at a counter- top. "It was reliable, but the new one is completely electronic and will detect any small trace of metal. It's a lot more sensitive." Accuracy is also better compared to the old line, which required Barragan and his col- leagues to verify counts. "Every half hour I had to be checking [the bot- tles] to make sure the count was accurate," he said. "Now we do it maybe twice a day and the count has always been fine." The line is rated to produce as many as 100 100-count bottles per minute, and Barragan usually runs it at about 45 bottles per minute. "But that's not due to the machine. Mainly it's because the people can't keep up The bottling line, shown between runs, includes a SortStar bottle unscrambler, a Street Fighter SF-100 electronic counter-filler, a Synchroblock desiccant and cotton inserter, a metal detector, a BeltStar inline capper, an induction sealer, a BeltStar retorquer, a BandStar neck bander, and a LabelStar labeler. www.tabletscapsules.com formulation production packaging