This article originally ran in the October 2018 issue of European Pharmaceutical Manufacturer magazine. By Jonathan Gaik, Natoli Scientific Tablet formulation development is a stylised process. Each formulator uses their own methodology. Some use the systematic Design of Experiments (DOE) approach, some test one variable at a time, and many use a combination of the two. However, all

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

The principal purpose for segment alignment is to allow the capsules to be separated reliably and rejoined accurately. To do this, the hole in the upper segment must be accurately lined up with the lower segment, and the segment surfaces must be parallel. Before Aligning Segments Before aligning segments, the lower segment is placed on

This post is an updated version of our original post on ultrasonic cleaning. Your tools are a major investment, keeping them clean and productive should be a priority. Ultrasonic cleaning has long been considered the most effective, nondestructive way to clean tools. In fact, the Tablet Specification Manual recommends using an ultrasonic cleaning process to

One of the surest and most inexpensive ways to maintain tablet quality and reduce tooling and operating cost is proper punch maintenance. Maintaining the quality of your punches helps to eliminate tablet defects such as picking, sticking, capping, lamination etc. Proper punch maintenance training helps to solve these issues while significantly reducing costs by increasing

This article originally published in Tablets and Capsules’ “Solid Dose Digest” sent July 25, 2016. Industry experts have long debated the best tooling for tablet manufacturing. To understand why their opinions differ, you must first understand the history of the punch. In this edition of the column, I show that the standard head flat has

Choosing the right tooling can increase tablet output, decrease waste and ultimately determine the success of a product launch. Assemble the Right Team First Generally, a tablet starts as a concept in a company’s marketing department without serious consideration of how it will be manufactured. If the marketing staff does not understand what’s feasible in

  When developing a new formulation, scientists are equipped with a small scale tablet press to study and understand their product’s tablet-ability. These small scale systems are very useful at the research level but do not always successfully transfer to larger scale manufacturing machines where compaction dwell time will be a critical component. Ideally, developing