Partnership targets pharmaceutical industry

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Aug 11, 2005

Rapra Technology and Icon Polymer have formed a strategic partnership for Icon's rubber products and components for the pharmaceutical industry.

Rapra Technology and Icon Polymer have formed a strategic partnership for Icon's rubber products and components for the pharmaceutical industry.

Retford Headquartered Icon is one of the few companies worldwide that is able to supply rubber components into drug delivery systems.

The partnership with Shawbury-based Rapra Technology will now further enable Icon to offer a one-stop-shop and seamless service to its existing and potential customers.

Full analytical and laboratory testing facilities will now be part of the Icon package.

The technical services supplied by Rapra Technology will include extractable and leachable testing, deformulation, protocol and consultative services.

The partnership will also allow Icon and Rapra to share general capabilities and information and to arrange compliance with cGMP, FDA and MHRA approvals and protocols.

Icon Project Manager Anna Shaw says: "Rapra Technology has over 85 years of generic rubber and plastics research expertise".

"We at Icon have over 30 years of manufacturing elastomer-based solutions for the pharmaceutical industry".

"Our strategic partnership will allow us to grow pharmaceutical rubber technology in line with the increased demand that is out there".

To that end Icon offers a bespoke and tailored design capability to its clients; providing solutions for a wide range of applications.

Icon also facilitates projects from design conception to product delivery; producing Catia design models generated in compliance with Global pharmaceutical specifications and protocol.

Rapra's Technology Manager, David Ingles, says: "Icon has identified that one of the fundamental requirements for suppliers into this sector is the provision of top quality analytical data to support technical claims made for the products".

"This data is also needed to address the increasing regulatory requirement for sophisticated extractables data from elastomeric components and products".

"At Rapra we are ideally placed to provide a full and bespoke service to Icon in these matters".

"We are delighted to be partnering Icon in this manner".