Q: How do we determine the cause of tablet capping during production and prevent it from occurring? A: Robert Sedlock, Natoli Engineering, says:  The term capping in tablet manufacturing refers to a tablet failure, a break across the horizontal plane, that you find when performing a breaking force or friability test. Many factors can contribute to

Q: What’s the proper way to maintain my tablet presses and tooling? A: Stephen Natoli says: Many factors can reduce the life expectancy of tooling and tablet presses, such as abrasive or corrosive formulations, press or turret wear, improper tooling setup on the press, and mishandling of tooling by technicians. Creating and following a tooling

Rushing A Product to Market Can Yield Some Expensive and Painful Lessons When scaling a new drug formulation from development into manufacturing, there is often a reality check regarding process scale-up and formulation performance at production levels. Problems with capping/lamination and sticking/picking are often first realized when a formulation is introduced to a level of

The number one reason for tablet press failure is lack of tooling cleanliness. Dirty tooling may cause binding, which can damage tooling and tablet presses. Keeping tools clean can decrease premature tool wear and allow lubrication to be more effective as well as reduce the possibility of product cross-contamination. Additionally, clean tooling is critical to

Tablet compression tooling is a considerable investment for your company. Quality tooling and a proper maintenance program are integral to producing high-quality tablets efficiently. Polishing and refurbishing are two of the surest and most inexpensive ways to maintain tablet quality, reduce operating costs, and yield the full ROI potential of your tooling. Punches and dies will

In the October 22, 2018, issue of Solid Dose Digest, a reader asked, “I need tablet compression training. How do I decide which course is right for me?” Natoli Scientific Director Jonathan Gaik answered: Tablet compression is complicated, and most who work in the industry learn on the job, but a growing number of options

Sticking and picking are ubiquitous problems in tablet manufacturing and generally arise from either formulation or tablet design inadequacies. Sticking occurs when formulation granules stick to the face of the punch cup. Formulation sticking in the letters and characters of punch embossing is typically referred to as picking. Both result in tablet defects and lower

By Jonathan Gaik, Director, Natoli Scientific In the July/August issue of EPM magazine, I wrote that most challenges in the tableting process initiate with or can be traced back to powder flow. I mentioned in my article – “Go with the flow: The critical issue of powder flow in tablet production” – that conducting studies

This article originally ran in the July/August 2018 issue of European Pharmaceutical Manufacturer magazine. By Jonathan Gaik, Natoli Scientific The ideal active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) is one that flows well, is stable, self-lubricates, compacts well and is not strain rate sensitive. While all the listed properties are important, the one that continues to be critical

First impressions are everything, especially for pharmaceutical, nutritional, and confectionery tablets. Discriminating consumers may decide whether they will be repeat customers based on a tablet’s appearance and their experience. That’s why tablet design should not be overlooked or taken for granted. Much too often in our industry, we see poor tablet design holding back companies. Don’t