For more than 40 years after the rigid foam liner packaging appeared, packaging for unit doses of drugs has increased a cost-effective and applicable packaging method. It has been proved that the rigid foam packing material is a durable, applicable method and adaptable to a wide range of packaging materials. Therefore, in the European market, even if the changes in the institutional environment are not conducive to the sale of rigid foam liner packaging materials, its popularity has not diminished.
As a product that emerged in the 1960s, rigid foam liner packaging materials were initially used as an aid to patient correction devices. Rigid foam liner packaging becomes more and more important when oral contraceptives are marketed. At the time, there were several other types of packaging materials on the market, such as packaging boxes, metal and glass tubes, bottles, and composite films, but none of them could be widely used for rigid foam-lined packing materials. In addition to improving the comfort of a patient's orthodontic appliance, the rigid foam liner packaging material is also easy to use and easy to mold. It also protects the product and ensures product stability. Hygroscopic tablets that are easily absorbed from the surrounding environment, or easily broken pieces of debris, are ideal for packaging with this material.
After being selected for the packaging material of oral contraceptives, the advantages and the wide range of uses of rigid foam liner packaging materials are immediately revealed. Compared with bottled tablets, the packaging costs and storage costs of the products are reduced, resulting in production Manufacturers benefit from it. Moreover, more information can be printed on rigid foam liner packaging materials, including patient information and brand information.
A rigid foam packaging machine manufacturer in Germany first developed a way to meet this demand; then the Italian manufacturer also developed measures. Both are the most rigid foam packing machines in the world today. The main production country.
Manufacturers have established basic operating principles for early production packaging machines, and some principles are still in use today. such as. The earliest packaging machines used intermittent motion rules for forming, sealing, punching, and cutting. Until today, many packaging machines still use these technologies. However, the basic operating principles have changed greatly. The latest packaging machines have been highly evolved compared to their ancestors. In recent years, rigid foam liner packing machines have been integrated into a complete packaging line and the output has also been greatly improved. Moreover, its application range has also been expanded. A variety of products can be packaged, and various types of rigid foam liner packing machines can be purchased on the market. For the first time, a combination of a rigid foam liner packing machine and a cardboard packaging machine was introduced in the mid-1960s, and the first fully integrated shrinking line emerged. These early solutions are now used in computer-managed packaging machines. The "ancestors", now, high-tech systems allow full automation from product filling to palletization.
In Europe, in the 1880s, it was a period of rapid growth of rigid foam liner packaging materials, as governments across the European continent began to advocate the use of organic materials as the preferred method of drug packaging. The advantage of packaging with organic packaging materials is that it can largely eliminate problems such as contamination of medicines, distribution errors, etc., so that when medicines are distributed to patients' hands, it is the same as when they just left the packaging line.
This is totally different from the traditional way of dispensing. In the traditional way of dispensing, the pharmacist sends the medicine from the bulk supply of medicine to the patient according to the amount of medicine required by the patient.
In order to correspond to this market trend. Packaging machine manufacturers began to increase production. In the early 1880s, production of 420 rigid blister packs per minute was rapid, and the production rate doubled in the late 1980s. Today, the output reaches 1200 per minute.
Another effect of packaging with organic packaging materials is that drug manufacturers have increased responsibility for the safety of medicines and packaging. Eliminating pharmacy dispensing reduces the risk of drug dispensing errors, but it also removes the last line of control before the drug reaches the patient. The method of visual inspection by the operator was once a solution. However, the production speed of the product has been increasing. Such a visual inspection method is becoming less and less efficient. Therefore, cameras and sensors have been introduced to perform full electronic surveillance. At this time, the packaging machine is required to be well compatible with these electronic surveillance devices.
There are many kinds of materials used for rigid foam liner packaging. The initial rigid foam liner packaging is made of PVC; The above is sealed with an aluminum film. There are still some products that are packaged with this composite film. For example, some confectionery products such as candy, but generally obtain drug license drugs are packed with other composite film.
There are two main factors that have caused changes in packaging materials. First, new packaging materials that can better protect drugs have emerged in the market. Second, the pressure of adjustments in laws and regulations will have a great impact on manufacturers. The importance of protecting drugs has a lot to do with the sensitivity of drugs to humidity and the climatic conditions in the regions where they are supplied. Because PVC has a long-term permeability, it is not suitable for the packaging of sensitive drugs used in humid climate areas. For many years, people have been studying its alternative products. Includes polyvinyl chloride (PVO) and polyoxyethylene (PVDC) composite membranes, multi-layer specialty membranes, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polypropylene (PP), and recently developed cold formed aluminum membranes Or aluminum-aluminum composite film and other materials. Among them, many composite films are still in use today. Some composite films require a special molding environment. For example, polypropylene (PP) has a special type of tantalum when it is heated, so it needs special treatment. When performing aluminum film pressing, be sure to avoid the stress point of aluminum, otherwise there will be small holes in the aluminum film.