Wash Off Line (WOL) for the Courtoy Modul™ tablet press

Time is Money

When running a tablet press, keeping it in service is the key to profitability. Now the already very attractive process economics of the Courtoy Modul™ tablet press have been improved even further by increasing operating time through an innovative automated washing system, Wash Off Line (WOL).

The Modul™ contains all powder within an Exchangeable Compression Module (ECM) designed for extreme fast product changeover (often in as little as 30 minutes) with very high containment. The WOL increases production time by cleaning the ECM after it is removed from the tablet press. The Modul™ press remains in operation producing another product while the cleaning cycle runs.

The self-contained ECM holding all product contact parts is removed from the press onto a trolley by means of an incorporated arm. This trolley is rolled to a wash skid, where three high-performance spray nozzles are attached while still maintaining complete containment. The PLC program on the wash skid runs a user-defined program using cold and warm water in combination with detergents and other cleaning agents, and rinsing with purified water.

The Wash Off Line technique is much more economical than a Wash In Place (WIP) system because WIP requires shutdown of the tablet press during the entire cleaning, drying, and cooling cycle. With WOL you can continue generating profit by running a second product while the first product module is being cleaned.

Other advantages of Wash Off Line:

• The WOL system is proven effective, with a full year of extensive testing, both in house and in production service with different pharmaceutical companies.
• The trolley, equipped with dedicated cam tracks, spins the turret and enables the punch tips to separate from the die for spraying.
• Only the parts within the ECM are exposed to water and cleaning solutions, so the cams and rollers can still be made out of any preferred materials.
• Since the ECM is fully contained, it is not necessary to clean non-product contact parts or the clean room.
• Only one wash skid is required, no matter how many presses are in operation.
• After a 40-minute cleaning cycle the ECM may be disassembled for final sanitization and drying.
• The same WOL principle may be applied to the cleaning of powder feed and peripheral equipment.

The Wash Off Line Exchangeable Compression Modul™ will be presented at the Interphex 2005 and is available for testing at Niro Inc. in Columbia Maryland.

Contact Information:
North America:
Niro Pharma Systems
Niro Inc.
9165 Rumsey Road
Columbia, MD 21045
USA
Johan Van Evelghem, Sales Manager - Courtoy Tablet Presses
Tel.: +1-410-997-6692
Fax: +1-410 997 5021
E-mail: johan.vanevelghem@niroinc.com
Web: http://www.niroinc.com

For inquiries outside North America:
Niro Pharma Systems
Courtoy N.V.
Jan Vogeleer, Managing Director
Tel.: +32 2 363 8307
Fax: +32 2 356 0516
E-mail: jan.vogeleer@courtoy.be

Niro Pharma Systems is the world leader in providing advanced processing solutions for solid dosage forms to the pharmaceutical industry. Based on a dedication to research and durable quality, Niro Pharma Systems offers a wide range of solutions, from individual pieces of equipment to complete integrated plants, by uniting the state-of-the-art technologies of Aeromatic, Buck, Collette, Courtoy, Fielder, Nica™ and Niro.