At Pack Expo, MHI to Demo Small-batch Blister Machine for Stability Tests & Clinical Trials

Erie, CO – Maruho Hatsujyo Innovations (MHI) – the U.S. subsidiary of Maruho Hatsujyo Kogyo Co. Ltd, a Japanese company with subsidiaries in Asia and the U.S. will showcase a blister machine specifically intended for stability testing, clinical trials and similar small-run applications at Pack Expo Booth W-15058, November 3-6 in Chicago. The Eagle-LP – short for “Lab Pack” – joins the company’s extensive blister packaging equipment family as a reliable, cost-effective solution for various concepting and development stages and initial small-batch production.

The Eagle-LP addresses two longstanding challenges in early-stage blister packaging: affordability and floorspace. Many pharma manufacturers have faced challenges finding blister units for stability testing, clinical trials and small batch runs that aren’t onerously expensive and unnecessarily lengthy or bulky. The modestly priced Eagle-LP measures just 1.8 meters in both length and height, and just .9 meters in width.

Importantly, the Eagle-LP also is designed to accommodate a newer generation of more sustainable blister film substrates – ones that are typically more difficult to form and seal. The unit can easily accommodate PVC, PVDC, PET, ACLAR, ALU and PP.

The Eagle-LP can run up to 20 cycles per minute, with a blister format area of 110 X 60mm and a maximum blister depth of 20mm. It can handle forming materials up to 320mm in diameter, and lidding materials up to 220mm in diameter. The unit is capable of both thermoforming and cold foil forming.

“As the number of tailored and small-run medicines continues to climb, product development professionals often find themselves with suboptimal early-stage blistering options, including purchasing large, expensive equipment or interrupting mass production machinery, which limits output capacity elsewhere,” said Tomoki Kishi, General Manager of Machinery Solutions for Maruho Hatsujyo Innovations. “The Eagle-LP provides a cost-effective solution designed to meet needs specific to upstream packaging – from stability testing and clinical trials to small-batch ramp-up production.”