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Pfizer Improves Quality Control with the Safeline Powerchek X Ray System
Pfizer Improves Quality Control with the Safeline Powerchek X Ray System
Pfizer partners with Mettler Toledo to eliminate inefficiencies and improve quality control
New York,
New York,
United States of America
(prbd.net)
23/06/2010
"“Since we purchased the Safeline PowerChek x-ray system, customer complaints about missing or partial tablets or crunched packages have been eliminated,” Collazo said. “The system is extremely easy to use and product set up takes no time at all.”
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Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, LLC was founded in 1849 but has grown to be the largest drug manufacturer in the world, employing nearly 82,000 people in 150 countries. The company produces over-the-counter drugs and prescription drugs such as Zoloft®, Celebrex® and Viagra®, as well as animal health products like Revolution/Stronghold® and BoviShield®. Its largest facility in Vega Baja, Puerto Rico, operates within 800,000 square feet of space and has 13 production lines.
Pfizer employees work hard to maintain the company’s reputation for high quality products. So when Francisco Collazo, a technical service specialist, began noticing over-the-counter packaging lines were producing broken tablets and that packaging disguised some crushed or folded blister packs, he realized the company’s vision system and checkweigher were not adequately identifying the defects. Pfizer looked to METTLER-TOLEDO Safeline for the solution.
“Since we purchased the Safeline PowerChek x-ray system, customer complaints about missing or partial tablets or crunched packages have been eliminated,” Collazo said. “The system is extremely easy to use and product set up takes no time at all.”
Superior Image Processing Technology
The PowerChek x-ray inspection system detects and rejects multiple contaminants and verifies product and package integrity. It has superior image processing technology that uses a high-resolution color screen to provide visual reference of the machine’s diagnostics. The system also has an intuitive operator interface and makes frequent calibration unnecessary. However, Callazo insists the one feature that made Mettler-Toledo’s x-ray system stand out from other systems was its ability to detect errors in multiple layers of packaging.
“They were the only manufacturer that could inspect blister packs stacked up to four deep. All other systems would only guarantee two layers,” Callazo said.
Pfizer runs 13-15 over-the-counter products on the production line but because the PowerChek stores multiple product profiles, product changeover takes only seconds. A high-resolution color screen provides visual reference of the machine’s operation using video images and real-time diagnostics. The system continually analyzes product variations and automatically adjusts to achieve optimum sensitivity to eliminate detection errors.
There are almost no false rejects,” Callazo added. “Sometimes we open the package and have to shake the package and find that the system identified a tablet that was shaved off on the opposite side of the tablet – we would never have been able to see it.”
The dependability of the machine is also impressive, says Collazo.
“We purchased the Safeline PowerChek x-ray two years ago and we have had no problems whatsoever. Reliability is fantastic; we are so pleased with the METTLER-TOLEDO Safeline system,” he said.
For more information, please visit http://us.mt.com/us/en/home/supportive_content/news.Pfizer_X_ray.oneColEd.html
NOTE:
The PowerCheKPlus brand is marketed under the InspireX brand name outside the USA.
The PowerPhasePLUS brand is marketed under the Signature brand name outside the USA.
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About METTLER TOLEDO
METTLER TOLEDO is a leading global supplier of precision instruments and services. The Company is the world’s largest manufacturer and marketer of weighing instruments for use in laboratory, industrial and food retailing applications. METTLER TOLEDO also holds top-three market positions in several related analytical instruments and is a leading provider of automated chemistry systems used in drug and chemical compound discovery and development. In addition, the Company is the world’s largest manufacturer and marketer of metal detection and other end-of-line inspection systems used in production and packaging and holds a leading position in certain process analytics applications.
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