Harro Höfliger: The product defines the process and the machine

Harro Höfliger Verpackungsmaschinen GmbH from the Swabian town of Allmersbach im Tal specialises in process solutions for pharmaceutical and medical products and standard consumer goods. Product assembly and final packaging as well as high-precision filling and aseptic processes are among the company's core competences. One of the company's principles is that the product defines the machine and the process.

Complex packaging solutions from Harro Höfliger

The origins of the company go back to cartoning and packaging machines. Today Harro Höfliger offers Modular solutions for secondary and tertiary packaging to. Standard platforms are complemented by customised feeding and handling technology. The Customisation to the customer product and safe transport take centre stage, resulting in customised solutions. This even applies to unusual packaging or multi-format systems - where others stop, Harro Höfliger starts. Customers can rely on over 40 years of experience in packaging machine construction.

„As a family-run company, we operate sustainably and think long-term. Our corporate values form the compass for our actions: trust, fairness, openness and mutual respect are an integral part of the way we work together.“ Markus Höfliger, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Harro Höfliger Verpackungsmaschinen GmbH

For example, plasters and other wound care products pose a challenge due to their low weight, among other things. Firstly, the raw material for these products is processed using web processing machines. This is followed by flawless and safe packaging, which requires precise handling processes for flat pouches and high speeds.

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Pens and autoinjectors must also be handled safely and precisely. The correct positioning of the products in the folding boxes plays an important role here. Proper packaging is followed by weight checking, printing with a serialisation code including optical detection and final packaging via wrap-around or side loading for transport.

This process chain is also used for vials, contact lenses, syringes, bottles and blow-fill-seal strips. For the fully automatic packaging of these strips, Harro Höfliger has designed turnkey packaging lines that cover all steps up to cartoning ready for dispatch - both with product feed from the bulk and in direct line combination with a blow-fill-seal system.

Inhalation products for pulmonary and nasal application

Just how many different process steps Harro Höfliger covers is also evident in the area of inhalation - from powder dosing and precise assembly to gentle packaging, a complete solution can be offered here. Blisters, capsules and discs as well as reservoirs and liquid cartridges can be processed within the process.

Regardless of whether powdered or liquid substances are to be filled into inhalers, Harro Höfliger provides each customer with the dosing technology tailored to its respective preparation are available. The physical properties and special features of the filling media have a decisive influence on the selection of the optimum dosing system. The experts in the Pharma Services department support the selection process with an in-house laboratory and filling tests, among other things.

Even for the smallest quantities of inhalable products, such as dry powder inhalers (DPI), various filling technologies can be used. With these systems, free-flowing and cohesive powders can be dosed in quantities of less than one milligram. X-ray and sensor technology ensures that the exact filling quantity has been added. Camera systems monitor the correct sequence of the production process.

Sterile products require aseptic processes

With the concept of hygiene classes, the VDMA (German Engineering Federation) has created the ideal link between the hygienic requirements of the machine and the products to be processed.

In the Aseptic hygiene class, which Harro Höfliger pursues, sterility and the avoidance of any introduction of germs after sterilisation of the products have top priority. The focus here is on three areas: product sterilisation, keeping the product sterile and conveying it, and final sterile filling and packaging.

Process reliability is always crucial for safe and economical production. Above all, this means checks wherever possible. Depending on the specific requirements, various systems are used for this purpose. They are either already integrated into the process or operate at a separate point. These systems include gross/net load cells for dosing.

One Real-time evaluation provides information on even the smallest deviations or incorrect parts for sorting. Various analysis processes diagnose both gases and even the smallest impurities, measure residual oxygen or determine current production statuses via a camera system. Additional laminar flow technology increases product protection. The requirements of GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) as well as EU and FDA (Food and Drug Administration) guidelines must always be complied with.

In addition to the product, the operator must also be optimally protected. Barrier systems tailored to the process technology can help here. RABS, Restricted Access Barrier Systems, create a separation between product and operator through enclosure and glove ports.

Focus on interdisciplinarity and customer understanding at Harro Höfliger

The creativity of Harro Höfliger's employees is based on many years of experience with pharmaceutical, medical technology and consumer products as well as target-orientated research and development. Extremely important is the Understanding of customer products. The broad base of core technologies, for example for dosing, assembly and web-processing processes, serves as the basis for the respective solution.

One key to innovation is interdisciplinarity: around 300 of the 1,400 employees work in development; and these are not just mechanical engineers, but also pharmacists and pharmaceutical engineers. At Harro Höfliger, the employees understand both the pharmaceutical sector and mechanical engineering. This combination is crucial for success and ensures innovation. For some time now, there has been a separate department for the creation of new products called Engineering & Innovation.

[infotext icon]Founded in 1975 in Stuttgart-Untertürkheim by Harro Höfliger, the company has been headquartered in Allmersbach im Tal since 1979. In 2018, the company achieved a turnover of 285 million euros. Exports accounted for over 80 per cent. The focus is on customised production and process solutions[/infotext].