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Faster, smarter production

더 빠른 의약품

Pfizer transformed tablet and capsule production with continuous manufacturing, automation, and digitalization. The result is faster production, greater flexibility, consistent quality, and improved supply for patients worldwide.

From data to better medicines

Medications from Pfizer, urgently needed to help people get healthy and enjoy a good quality of life, must be continuously available to patients worldwide in consistent quality. To ensure this is the case, Pfizer is further automating and digitalizing the production of tablets and capsules at its Freiburg site.

“We are making good progress toward Industrie 4.0,” says Michael Becker, who heads Global Engineering at Pfizer in Germany. Without digitalization the current project would not have been possible.

At the production facility in Freiburg, data is recorded and analyzed at billions of points every millisecond. The data is used by the control system, which makes it possible to respond directly to the measurement results. “Quality is measured continuously, and the control system responds directly,” comments Becker. No more testing in the lab, and no need even for sampling. Everything runs automatically.

Pfizer transformed tablet and capsule production with continuous manufacturing, automation, and digitalization.

With a new automation and digitalization solution, Pfizer is aiming for continuous, fast, and flexible tablet manufacture.

Close to the “dream of every pharmacist”

Becker describes the dream of every pharmacist like this: “You put in all the ingredients at the start of the process, and out comes a finished capsule at the end.” With Continuous Manufacturing Technology (CMT), Pfizer is a little closer to making that dream a reality. The food and beverage industry led the way, and employees at Pfizer in Groton, Connecticut, USA, developed continuous manufacturing technology on that basis. CMT is now being introduced around the world, including in Freiburg.It makes production much faster and more flexible. In recent years, Becker has noticed that demand for medications is fluctuating more and more. Pfizer’s Freiburg location used to need up to four months to adjust to changes in volume. “But thanks to CMT, we now can just make a small adjustment in order for the plant to run faster or slower,” says Becker. “In other words, you can adapt to a new market situation in a matter of minutes.”

MES as the central element

The Manufacturing Execution System (MES) assumes a key role in the IT and automation project for Pfizer’s manufacturing facility in Freiburg: It forms the link between the process control system and the Electronic Batch Record (EBR) system that documents production electronically, manages all of the equipment and the process chains, and integrates all higher and lower-level systems to form an end-to-end solution for data recording and processing.

The automation solution is based on Simatic IT. To control the new plant units, the project team used powerful, high-availability Simatic S7 controllers and a Simatic WinCC SCADA system to visualize the processes. In addition to the shelf servicing unit in the high-rack store, which uses a Simatic S7-1500 as its head PLC, a vertical conveyor was also incorporated in the new MES solution to supply the equipment on the first and second floors with bulk and granulate containers. The individual systems work together seamlessly and enable the processes to function smoothly.

Robotic arm on an automated production line.

최적화된 물류

Pfizer가 새로운 연속 공장을 통해 생산을 확장하기로 결정했을 때, 자재 운반 및 생산 제어 시스템도 단일 플랫폼으로 통합할 필요가 있었습니다. 이에 따라 다수의 생산 단계와 120개의 빅백(big bag) 공간을 갖춘 선반 서비스 유닛을 자동화된 자재 운반 및 공정 자동화 시스템에 통합해야 했습니다. 연속 제조를 위한 신규 건물에는 지속적인 계량 및 생산을 위한 자동화 시스템과 전자 공정 문서화 시스템도 함께 구축되었습니다.

환경도 수혜자

Becker는 이렇게 말합니다. "Pfizer는 항상 환경을 고려합니다. Pfizer는 엔드 투 엔드 관점을 취하며 가능한 한 많은 친환경 시스템을 프로세스에 도입하고자 합니다." 이 프로젝트만으로도 트럭을 통한 원자재 운송이 약 50% 절감되었습니다. 태양열 시스템으로 생산에 필요한 공기를 건조하고, LED로 건물 전체를 조명하며, 공정에서 발생하는 열과 냉기를 회수하여 활용합니다.

고임금 국가 독일에서의 생산

Becker가 자주 받는 질문 중 하나는 독일과 같은 고임금 국가에서 자동화 및 디지털화 생산에 투자하는 것이 과연 가치 있는 일인가 하는 것입니다. "독일은 교육 수준이 매우 높은 국가입니다."라고 그는 말합니다. "Pfizer의 직원들은 자동화 시스템을 운용하고 이해하는 데 매우 뛰어난 역량을 갖추고 있습니다. 따라서 높은 수준의 자동화를 통해 인건비가 낮은 국가 못지않게, 어쩌면 그 이상으로 효율적인 생산이 가능합니다."

The environment is also one of the winners

“Pfizer always considers the environment,” says Becker. “We adopt an end-to-end view and try to include environmentally friendly systems in our processes as much as possible.” In this project alone, the transportation of raw materials by truck was cut by almost 50 percent. Solar thermal systems dry the air needed for production, LEDs provide lighting throughout the building, and the heat and cooling resulting from processes is recovered.

Working in Germany as a high-wage country

One question Becker is regularly asked is whether it’s worthwhile to invest in automated and digitalized production in a high-wage country like Germany. “Germany is a highly educated country,” he observes. “Our employees are very well qualified to operate and also to understand automated systems. And thus, with a high level of automation in place, we can manufacture just as efficiently here as in a country with lower wage costs – perhaps even more so.”

다양한 효율성 향상

새로운 자동화 및 디지털화 솔루션을 통해 Pfizer는 이제 프라이부르크(Freiburg) 공장의 모든 프로세스를 지속적으로 모니터링하고 품질 기준을 한층 높일 수 있게 되었습니다. 프로세스는 이전보다 유연해졌으며 현재 요구 사항에 더욱 효과적으로 대응할 수 있습니다. 디지털 공정 관리 및 문서화는 프라이부르크(Freiburg)의 생산 효율을 지속적으로 개선하는 데 유용한 정보를 제공합니다. 공정 데이터는 공정 지향적 지표를 활용하여 공정 및 제품 품질과 공장 성과를 온라인으로 검증하는 데 활용됩니다. 그 결과, 의약품의 승인 및 출시를 더욱 신속하게 진행할 수 있습니다. 나아가 다양한 거점의 기술과 프로세스를 분석하고 상호 비교하는 것도 가능해졌습니다. 이는 글로벌 기업에 있어 중요한 요소입니다. 또한 신제품 및 새로운 프로세스를 공동으로 개발하고 시장 출시 수준까지 성숙시킬 수 있습니다.

환자를 위한 원활한 생산

프라이부르크(Freiburg)에서 생산되는 정제와 캡슐은 암, 통증, 심장 질환 환자 치료에 사용됩니다. "생산은 기술이나 조직을 위한 것이 아니라, 항상 환자를 위한 것임을 마음속에 새기고 있습니다."라고 Becker는 말합니다. 그렇기 때문에 품질이 최우선이며, 그다음은 안정적인 공급입니다. "어떤 환자도 Pfizer 제품을 기다리는 일이 없어야 합니다." 2018년 4월

Gloved hand sorting red and white capsules on a tray.

Smooth production for patients

The tablets and capsules from Freiburg are used for treating cancer, pain, and heart ailments in patients. “We always have in the back of our minds that production is there to serve the patients, and is not just for the sake of the technology or any organization,” Becker notes. That is why quality is his top priority, followed by security of supply. “No patient should be left waiting for any of our products.” April 2018