Pharmaceuticals & Medical Supplies

Process equipment used in the healthcare industry follow rigid specifications for accuracy, consistency and cleanliness. These regulations ensure that end products are safe, pure, and effective. In particular, mixing equipment employed in the production of pharmaceuticals and medical devices deal with a higher level of complexity because their use is more specialized. Not one design fits all.

Mixing fulfills many objectives beyond simple combination of raw ingredients. These include preparing fine emulsions, reducing particle size, carrying out chemical reactions, manipulating rheology, dissolving components, facilitating heat transfer, etc. So even within a single pharmaceutical product line, it is not uncommon to employ a number of different style mixers to process raw ingredients, handle intermediates and prepare the finished product.

Moreover, most pharmaceuticals are highly process-dependent. Next to the chemistry of the formulation itself, the mixing operation has a decided influence on whether a drug will deliver the accurate dosage, have an acceptable appearance and texture, or be stable for the appropriate length of time. The importance of proper mixer selection and optimal operation can hardly be over-estimated.

• Antacid Powder Blends - containing sodium bicarbonate, sodium carbonate, citric acid and flavors are blended in large capacity ROSS Ribbon Blenders.
• Bioadhesives - bioadhesive dosage forms, such as laminated polymer films, mucoadhesive tablets and patches, are continually being investigated for drug delivery. The ROSS VersaMix with SLIM System has successfully been tested for preparing mucoadhsive formulations containing hydroxyethyl cellulose, polycarbophil and sodium CMC. Other ROSS Multi-Shaft, High Shear and Planetary Mixers are utilized for making hydrocolloid medical adhesives.
• Bone Graft Pastes and Bone Cement- ROSS supplies Double Planetary Mixers to manufacturers of bone grafting products. One such company's previous mixing process took approximately 7 hours to complete a 1-quart batch. In a mixing trial at the ROSS Test & Development Center, this same product was made with a Double Planetary "HV" Blade Mixer in only 30 minutes. Another manufacturer's application is resorbable osteoconductive bone graft substitute (BGS) particulate composed of two bioactive glass materials for which the HV blades are also performing exceptionally well. The ROSS PowerMix is likewise used for mixing components of various bone cement formulations.
• Collagen Solutions - for neurosurgery, reconstructive surgery and soft tissue repair. One customer utilizes a stringy collagen fiber product that they are precipitating in an ammonium hydroxide precipitation reaction. The stringy collagen would wrap around any agitator shaft of conventional design. They visited our T&D Center to evaluate the Double Planetary mixer with HV Blades as a possible way of mixing and precipitating the collagen without having the fibrous material wrap around the Helical HV blades. The test was exceptionally successful. Other customers have long been using our Planetary Mixers for various collagen-based applications.
• Dental Composites - The ROSS PowerMix and Double Planetary Mixers are used industry-wide to mix a number of formulations found in dental impressions and prosthetic devices. A customer replaced their three roll mill, which gives slower throughput and requires pre-mixing, with a 40-gallon PowerMix designed for operation under full vacuum up to 29.5"Hg. Vacuum is applied when necessary to de-air the product prior to packaging.
• Dental Pastes, Gels and Solutions - Abrasive dental pastes are mixed in ROSS Planetary Mixers with hard chrome-plated or Kynar-coated wetted parts. One of the largest suppliers of professional dental products in the world uses ROSS SLIM Systems to transform powder concentrates into liquid form. The SLIM Systems efficiently introduce 25 different powders into a combination of 59 different chemicals. The resulting mixtures are sold as liquid disinfectants that find various uses in dentists' offices, from hand care to infection control to instrument sterilization. One of the powders being processed in the SLIM is benzocaine, an oral anesthetic also used to treat canker sores. This company also prepares their fluoride gels and pastes on ROSS Double Planetary Mixers.
• Tablet Granulations - Various types of ROSS Equipment are used by pharmaceutical companies in preparing wet granulations (where active solutions are sprayed to powder ingredients such as sorbitol, Cabosil fumed silica, corn starch, etc.) or in vacuum drying pharmaceuticals cake and pastes for transformation into free-flowing powders.
• Tablet Coatings - Cellulose powders and food coloring are efficiently blended into water through ROSS High Shear Mixers.
• Non-animal Gel Capsules - A major supplier of pharmaceutical and nutraceutical capsules have standardized on ROSS PowerMix and Discharge Systems for their non-animal gel capsules.
• Others: Components of blood reagents, transdermal patches, optical implants, eye drops, ointments, nanocomposites, drug vehicles, electrolyte solutions, vitamin supplements, gelatin compounds, fish oils, medial gels and putties.