Energy-saving "cold" WFI generation for MediPac, Germany

Producing Water for Injection with 80% less energy consumption compared to conventional destillation
Pharmaceutical packaging
Business case listing

THE CLIENT

MediPac GmbH, based in Königswinter, Germany, is an international manufacturer and specialist wholesaler of high-quality pharmaceutical primary packaging, medical products and plastic packaging. 

With 35 employees, MediPac generates annual sales of around five million euros. The company invests around 7.5 percent of this annually in technology and new developments. The product portfolio currently comprises around 1,200 items. 

 

THE CLIENT'S NEEDS

Before delivery, the packaging must be cleaned and prepared for the aseptic filling of pharmaceutical products at the manufacturer. Previously, purified water (Aqua Purificata) was used for this purpose at MediPac. However, this could only serve part of the market, for example for pharmaceutical preparations that do not have to be sterile. In order to expand and meet the high demands in other segments, the water treatment system had to be expanded accordingly. 

The acquisition of a system for the production of Water for Injection (WFI) is intended to open up new product segments and thus cover the entire pharmaceutical market. For the realization, a cost-effective cold process for the production of WFI was required.
 

WFI generation using IonPro LX system at MediPac, Germany

THE SOLUTION

Integration into the existing water treatment system provided a cost-effective option: The IonPro LX is a compact system for the production of ultra-pure water, suitable for medical products and the pharmaceutical industry. Depending on the version, the fully integrated system produces between 240 and 1,000 l of water per hour. It combines reverse osmosis (RO) as a purification process followed by continuous electro-deionization (CEDI). In combination with a connected ultrafiltration (UF), up to 1,000 liters of WFI can be produced per hour. The plant has a small footprint and meets the requirements of all globally relevant pharmacopoeias. 

 

Energy-saving WFI production

Two criteria in particular were decisive for the investment decision: Cold WFI production consumes considerably less energy compared with classic distillation. A hot system would have required 50 to 60 kW/h, the IonPro only 10 kW/h, a good 80 percent less. In addition, a distillation would have required far more space and demanded a lot from the personnel in technical terms.

 

KEY FIGURES

  • 1,000 liters per hour of WFI can be produced

  • Requires 80% less energy than conventional "hot" WFI purification using destillation