The medical field has been playing an important role in everyone’s life not only in human life but also in the life of other living species. The most important part of the medical field is the “Medicine” and when it comes to medicine, the manufacturing process and the packaging play a very critical role.
So, what is pharmaceutical packaging, how it’s been done, does it have different types, what are the materials used? Well, let’s reach out to all such questions and more.
Whether it’s any other product or medicine, packaging plays an important part in all. Packaging has often been referred to as the 5th P of the marketing mix. In the case of medicines, the packaging is not just part of the marketing mix but very critically related to the product features, application, and shelf life. The packaging of drugs is important to protect drugs from damage, germs, outer atmosphere, and bacteria and at the same time have to take care of child and old age safety concerns.
Types of Pharmaceutical Packaging:
1. Containers
2. Aluminium foil
3. Injectibles/ Vials
4. Bottles
5. Cartons
6. Paper Board
7. Lamitubes
8. Paper
9. PVC Based Combinations
Packaging in the pharmaceutical industry varies from drug to drug and normally there are three levels of packaging commonly referred to as the primary, secondary, and tertiary packaging.
1. Primary packaging system is the material that first envelops the product and holds it i.e., those package components and subcomponents that actually come in contact with the product, or those that may have a direct effect on the product shelf-life e.g., ampoules and vials, prefilled syringes, IV containers, blister packs, etc.
2. Secondary packaging system is outside the primary packaging and used to group primary packages together e.g., cartons, boxes, shipping containers, injection trays, etc.
3. Tertiary packaging system is used for bulk handling and shipping e.g., barrel, container, edge protectors, etc.
Some commonly used types of primary pharmaceutical packaging are Ampoules, Vials, Blister packs, Bottles, and Sachet packaging. let’s check out each of them in detail.
Ampoules Packaging:
The ampoule packs are mainly taken in use for the packaging of a small number of liquid drugs. These containers are small in size compared to the vials packaging and are mostly used to store single-dose medicines and are made up of glass or plastic materials.
Vials Packaging:
Vial containers are also made of glass and plastic materials but are comparatively larger in size than the ampoules containers. These containers are also used to store liquid, solid, or powder drugs but their capacity to store drugs is more compared to the ampoules containers.
Blister packs:
Blister packs are commonly used for the packaging of solid doses like tablets and capsules & Losenges. The packs are mainly made up of thermoformed plastics and manufactured with the lidding of aluminum foil or plastic that could be torn using hand. A state-of-the-art blister pack usually comprises a basic coat of aluminium or robust paper or plastic and a transparent plastic film through which the individual tablets can then be squeezed one by one.
This has proved cost-effective to produce and also less wasteful than other types of packaging, as it requires relatively little material.
Tablets are easy to remove and to dose, thus contributing to better patient satisfaction.
The transparent film makes it possible to identify a product quickly and to enhance its advertising impact at the POS.
Over the past 40 years, blister packs have been adopted globally by the pharmaceutical industry because of the flexibility in design and high productivity that the process delivers for the packaging of oral solids.
Blister packs act as perfect sealing agents for microbes and provide stable and reliable solutions for pills. Blister packaging material is getting more popular as it provides an aseptic solution
Dosing accuracy reduces all medication errors. Blister packs are gaining popularity owing to their “smart” features; one can track whether the pills are taken on time or not. Nowadays, blister packs are being linked with sensors that send alerts to smartphones, thereby reducing medication errors.
Bottles:
Pharma Pet Bottles
Pharmaceutical packaging bottles are usually available in two types of glass and plastic bottles. They are mostly available in orange and light brown color as these colors protect liquid drugs from ultraviolet lights.
Sachet Packaging:
Sachet packages are small pouch available in different shapes and sizes e.g: square and rectangle shapes. These pouches are mainly made up of a particular type of plastic, gives paper-pouch kind of look to the pouch and could be easily torn by the hand. These pouches are affordable and can only be used once, as once torn couldn’t be reused.
Benefits of Effective Pharmaceutical Packaging:
Nowadays, there has been huge competition in every field. so, the outer look and packaging of the product play an important role, the pharmaceutical packaging is not just about attracting or convincing people to purchase the medicine but a lot more. To keep the drug safe packaging plays a very important role but the most critical aspect is the material used for packaging as the drugs should remain safe during the course of its shelf life and should not react with the material of the containers.
The information and guidance mentioned over the packaging should be mentioned in detail, clear, and readable which would make packaging looking more effective and trustworthy.
The effective packaging of drugs is really important, making drug packaging better not only benefits the patients but also increases the trust of the consumer to the particular brand which would indirectly increase sales.