Small-Scale Pharmaceutical Spray Dryers

Most products undergo careful and thorough performance tests and experiments on pilot plants to determine the optimum operating conditions for the production-sized plant. Small-scale production is particularly relevant when the feed product is expensive or when only small quantities are required.

Five Good Reasons for Choosing Anhydro Small-Scale Pharmaceutical Spray Dryers:

• High uptime and yield
• Adaptability
• Repeatability
• Full process control
• Compliance with the strictest factory standards

Flexibility – Adaptability and Built-in Investment Protection

SPX FLOW offers a full range of small-scale evaporators, spray dryers, spin flash dryers and fluid beds that can be adapted to any requirement—and to new configurations driven by changing needs.

Our small-scale plant solutions consist of a basic module with a wide choice of additional options, allowing you to tailor the plant to your needs simply by adding standardized equipment.

Our dryers and evaporators are available as single- and two-stage solutions, based on a unique "Plug-and-Produce" concept, which eliminates almost all hidden extra costs. "Plug-and-Produce" means you can install and commission the plant in a fraction of the time required for customized solutions.

Small-scale plants are available with capacities ranging from 1 to 500 kg/h of water evaporation, enabling you to produce and post-treat a wide range of:

• Fine powders
• Agglomerated dust-free powders
• Granules

Safety – Compliance with the Strictest Factory Standards

The safety and well-being of your employees are critical. Our small-scale plants are designed according to the same stringent health and safety standards as full-scale factory plants.

Powder and dust can pose threats ranging from explosion risks to respiratory damage due to inhalation. Noise can also be as significant a problem in small-scale plants as in large-scale factory environments.

Small-scale plants eliminate the risk of powder explosions through four alternative explosion protection measures:

• Rupture disks
• Q-pipe suppression systems
• Closed-cycle operation in inert gas
• Explosion venting

The risk of operator exposure to dust is significantly reduced through:

• Efficient cleaning systems
• Door locks, sanitary and gas-tight connections
• Intelligent start-up and shutdown procedures

Ambient emissions are minimized using wet scrubbers and efficient textile filters with cartridges or bags.

In most cases, noise reduction measures are standard. All plants are CE-marked and meet most other international safety requirements in their standard configurations.

Easy Cleaning – Greater Yield with Less Downtime

Small-scale tests and production runs often take only a few hours. Shorter cleaning times can significantly increase the plant's return on investment.

Many small dryers and evaporators are used for R&D purposes, where most tests are conducted within a few hours. The same applies to many specialized production runs. In such cases, cleaning can take a disproportionate amount of time.

Anhydro small-scale spray dryers are designed for thorough cleaning in the shortest possible time.

Two cleaning options are available:

• Semi-manual integrated cleaning system
• Fully automatic CIP system (CIP stations are also available)

These cleaning systems offer a wide range of advantages, including:

• Effective cleaning
• Increased availability
• Reduced non-productive work
• Minimum dust exposure
• Ease of use

Small-scale plants are designed for sanitary operation in accordance with international Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) standards. All materials comply with the FDA White List, flanges feature O-ring connections and there are no sharp corners or edges inside the process vessels.

Process Control – Full Control for Consistency and Documentation

Consistency and documentation are as important in small-scale plant operation as they are in full-scale manufacturing. Advanced process control solutions are an integral part of Anhydro small-scale plants.

Advanced process control is essential to ensure consistency in experimental procedures and end-product quality. Data registration and logging are crucial for documentation purposes.

PLC System

Most small-scale plants are equipped with a control system based on an industrial PLC system with a soft-touch color screen as the operator interface. Process parameters and thresholds are displayed in clear text, ensuring straightforward and efficient operation.

Process data are registered locally on the small-scale plant. You can choose to have data transferred directly to your network via an Ethernet connection or stored on a portable smart card, allowing for easy transfer to a desktop or laptop computer.

Process data can be analyzed and presented in tabular and graphical formats using standard spreadsheet applications for documentation purposes.