The Sewell, NJ, office of Coperion K-Tron has released details of this global company’s next generation of highly accurate pharmaceutical loss-in-weight feeders. The new K3-PH line of feeders has been specifically designed to meet the growing demands of continuous processing in the pharmaceutical industry. The revised design features a modular concept complete with a drastically reduced overall footprint thanks to a new, smaller D4 platform scale incorporating the patented and highly accurate Smart Force Transducer (SFT) weighing technology. The modular quick-change design facilitates exchange of feeder types and sizes as well as hoppers or agitators using the same scale and drive for fast adaptation to new processes and formulations while also ensuring easy cleaning and maintenance. This is especially suitable for multi feeder clustering in a variety of continuous processes, including direct compression (CDC), continuous extrusion, wet and dry granulation, and continuous coating, as well as traditional batch processes. 

 

The new modular pharmaceutical feeder design includes several innovative modifications, all engineered as a result of feedback from end users in the pharmaceutical industry. The quick change feeder bowl, agitator and screw combinations which can be quickly decoupled from the feeder drive provide for easy and fast changeover and cleaning of the feeder. By opening two clamps the feeder bowl can be released and replaced by a clean one for running a new product. The three available Coperion K-Tron feeder types QT20, QT35 and QS60, both twin and single screw, can be used with the same scale and drive combination. The redesign of the scale from a round design to a trapezoid design facilitates an optimised multi feeder arrangement with a much smaller footprint. The new feeders will be exhibited at POWTECH. www.coperion.com/pharma 

 

 

The new K3-PH line of modular feeders has been designed to meet the growing demands of continuous processing in the pharmaceutical industry

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The new QT20 pharmaceutical feeder with a redesigned trapezoidal scale shape and smaller footprint has been optimised for multi-feeder cluster applications around a process inlet