Formaspace designs drug storage solution for US pharma firm

Published: 25-Aug-2016

The storage system helps prevent medical errors while reducing warehouse space requirements by more than 90%

When one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in Texas wanted to upgrade its material handling, bag fabrication and filling process to make it more efficient and less prone to labelling errors it called in Formaspace to help.

The Austin, Texas-based US designer and manufacturer of furniture for laboratory, industrial and office environments, evaluated the pharmaceutical company’s operations and identifed a bottleneck in its cleanroom operations.

According to Bill Lambert, Formaspace Director of Operations, after making an assessment of the client's manufacturing process, the firm was able to design a new, customised mobile racking system that provided a more secure, positive ‘chain of custody’ for its prescription drug products.

Formaspace also developed this new design to create a matching warehouse racking system that used 90% less storage space, thereby providing significant annual savings.

The new mobile racking system makes it easier to transfer the manufactured pharmaceutical products from the bag fabrication area to the filling areas, said Formaspace.

It also helps the firm to eliminate labelling errors.

Clear polycarbonate doors keep the product shelves sealed during cleanroom operations, while also allowing for product inspection and line clearing without having to open the doors.

Each mobile warehouse rack provides sealed storage with 10 individual locking shelves.

Additionally, each door compartment incorporates a unique lock so that only authorised personnel can gain access to a particular compartment.

This safety feature also provides an additional quality control check to prevent accidental misloading of incorrect pharmaceutical products.

The frames of the racking systems, which operate in cleanrooms, are made of stainless steel.

Colour-coordinated bumpers allow plant operators to locate and store the mobile units in their correct location when not in use.

The frames for the warehouse racking system are made of powder-coated steel.

'Our pharmaceutical client assures us they are on track to save $1 million each year on labour costs by using the new, efficient mobile racking system we’ve designed and manufactured for them,' said Jeff Turk, President and CEO of Formaspace.

'Our mission is to provide a complete solution for our clients — from providing lean manufacturing consulting services all the way to designing and manufacturing unique industrial furniture here at our Austin, Texas factory.'

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