Bosch presents new Xelum R&D for continuous production

May 28, 2018 – At Achema 2018, Bosch Packaging Technology will introduce its latest R&D device for the continuous production of oral solid dosage (OSD) forms, describing the platform as ensuring a short time to market and optimum dosing of APIs. With the Xelum R&D, Bosch says it is offering a platform that delivers an ideal start to continuous manufacturing.

As opposed to the common complex mass flow rate, excipients and active ingredients are dosed as a discrete mass in the Xelum R&D, explains the company, making it possible to dose even smallest amounts of APIs of less than one per cent. The system doses, mixes and granulates individual packages, so-called X-keys, which continuously run through the process chain and are removed from the machine as packages into bins. Depending on requirements, up to four loss-in-weight feeders can be used.

Since the Xelum R&D uses the same components for dosing, mixing and granulating as the Xelum production platform from Bosch, process parameters are identical and can be directly transferred 1:1. Material flow from dosing to emptying takes place in a closed process (bin-to-bin). Current continuous production systems for wet granulation mostly use twin screw granulators. The Xelum system relies on fluid bed processors. In the fluid bed, granulation and drying take place in the same process chamber.