Medicines manufacturing

Underpinning quality and accelerating innovation in the medicines manufacturing process

The pharmaceutical industry is continuously evolving to bring more innovative and better performing medicines to the market, reduce waste and costs and contribute to the global sustainability agenda. In addition, innovative technologies are being trialled and tested to ensure future medicines can be quickly manufactured and brought to market.

However, identifying, measuring and monitoring critical materials attributes during process development and manufacturing is challenging. It is often exacerbated by the lack of suitable analytical solutions which can lead to delays in achieving optimal quality, uniformity and, ultimately, product performance. NPL has the in-house expertise and facilities to provide a one-stop-shop of multidisciplinary scientific capability to help the sector address these challenges. We use our state-of-the-art measurement capability to tackle the complex measurement challenges, including:

• Morphology and size distribution: environmental electron microscopy (EEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and laser diffraction (LD)
• Chemistry and chemical imaging: X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), mass spectrometry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy and terahertz spectroscopy
• Modulus: using micro and nano-indentation techniques
• Thermal properties: thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), thermal AFM and pressure-volume-temperature (PVT) measurements
• Temperature and humidity: in situ measurements, moisture barriers, moisture content, stability in bespoke environments
• Impedance: using blend electrical characterisation
• Data: We have extensive expertise in data management, curation and handling of large data sets

Our advice is always independent and impartial and can provide pharmaceutical companies with a greater insight into the development, formulation, behaviour, stability and manufacturing of medicines, as well as the digitalisation of the sector.  We can also help with manufacturing quality assurance and regulatory compliance.

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