Production engineering R&D of a novel rotary configuration form fill sealing packaging system

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Form fill sealing is an important packaging method in the medical device/food sector. Existing form fill machines are in a linear configuration, typically take up 40 m2 of working floorspace and require the production of over 200,000 items per month to ensure the capital investment is fully utilised. The applicants believe that there is a market for their novel rotary format machine which possesses a working footprint of less than 6 m2. This solution will provide medical device producers with a cheaper, self-operated alternative to outsourced medical packaging services. The forecasted market opportunity is for at least 70 rotary form fill machines with a sales value in the order of £5.2m over a 3 year timeframe. The applicant (Riverside Medical) is an established specialist in medical packaging and has created the novel concept for the rotary form fill system based on their working knowledge of the market. Riverside has conducted initial development work on an early stage prototype rotary system. However, Riverside now face a number of technical hurdles (high speed film handling, drivetrain, software, packaging validation, system reliability & design robustness) that require comprehensive research & development to resolve. The enclosed project proposes to facilitate the collaboration of Riverside with key component specialists to develop an advanced pre-production form fill system. The project will conclude with packing trials of the rotary system to determine reliability and produce sufficient package samples to determine its quality and integrity.