The trend towards individualization and personalization can also be observed in the pharmaceutical industry. The industry is looking for alternatives to mass-produced products and filling and packaging solutions are also becoming faster and more flexible. Small batches, quick product changes and individualized solutions: More automation, less user intervention and higher availability are required. And, of course, the technology of the future should be able to adapt independently to changing requirements.

In view of increasingly limited space in production, high labour costs, a shortage of skilled personnel and, above all, the safety of the operators and the entire process, the machine manufacturer Bausch+Ströbel has picked up on the trend towards more automation and individualization with the flexible VarioSys production system: This modular and aseptic production system fully automates the filling and closing of ampoules, syringes and vials, flexibly and for small filling quantities. VarioSys combines a standardized clean room isolator with an interchangeable machine module.

Filling and packaging processes are the specialty of Bausch+Ströbel Maschinenfabrik Ilshofen (B+S). Liquid and powdered pharmaceuticals, syringes, vials, cartridges and ampoules are processed worldwide on B+S systems - from object cleaning and sterilization to labelling and syringe assembly. In addition to the development, design and construction of systems specially tailored to customer requirements, Bausch+Ströbel offers a wide range of services.

A new machine module (DDM 9105) with new functionalities was recently added to the B+S VarioSys system. It now allows fully automatic opening of tubs and enables RTU ("ready to use") vials in the nest (packaging unit) to be opened, denested, filled and stored fully automatically. The cover film of the tubs is removed using a thermal process, for which they are transported into the corresponding positions by a cleanroom robot or gripper. After opening, a second gripper removes the RTU vials from the nest and transfers them to the next module for further processing in bulk. If the RTU objects are processed further in the nest, the tub is placed on a conveyor belt for transfer after opening.

Zimmer gripper for nest handling
For the nest and tub handling of this special application, B+S decided to work with the Zimmer Group. In addition to the interaction with the robot, a major challenge for the gripper specialist from Rheinau in Baden was that the grippers are used in a clean room system. This ruled out the use of pneumatic grippers from the outset - simply for reasons of space due to the cables and exhaust air. A purely mechatronic gripper solution was therefore chosen relatively quickly.

Due to the aforementioned cleanroom issues, the grippers had to pay particular attention to the specifications for technical cleanliness, as they can come into direct contact with syringes and vials or with the nest. Commercially available grippers are not immune to particle transfer and unwelcome particle entrainment. Contact abrasion on the gripper itself can also generate annoying foreign bodies. They therefore pose a particular challenge for designers of cleanliness-sensitive systems. One of the first design measures taken by B+S was therefore to choose easily removable and sealed enclosures or sheaths with a closed surface for the grippers to prevent particles from entering the process.