In currently available continuous systems the thickness of the coating is limited by the maximum processing time dictated by the length of the unit, meaning that a preliminary and final coating run are usually required to process the tablet.
In contrast, Driam’s system employs a cycling process that divides the coating drum into individual chambers, or centres, where tablets are held for a specified length of time before being transferred to the next stage.
Driam believes that the Driaconti-T approach “[combines] the advantages of a batch coater and a continuous coater where each center is receiving an exactly defined treatment.”
A Driam spokesman told in-PharmaTechnologist that the platform is a completely new technology for the pharmaceutical industry, but that it builds on the firm’s experience in the confectionary sector.
He went on to explain that increasing batch size for tablet manufacturing runs to help producers make best use of resources was a key motivation for the development of the Driaconti-T system.
The spokesman explained that continuous system allows manufacturers to “coat tablets as they come from the tablet press, with no intermediate buffering, loading or unloading time and no batch limits.”
He added that the unit has already attracted considerable interest from “well known” tablet manufacturers, but could not provide additional details for reasons of confidentiality.