Robots (and robot-like devices) also increase flexibility of packaging equipment, thus reducing changeover to a push of a button to change the recipe. More-complex changeovers may necessitate the replacement of one end-effector with another, but it may be possible for the robot to perform this activity without any physical intervention from the operator. Even if the operator must assist, the tooling change is not likely to require more than a few minutes.

Hallie Forcinio is Pharmaceutical Technology's Packaging Forum editor, 4708 Morningside Drive, Cleveland, OH 44109, tel. 216.351.5824, fax 216.351.5684, editorhal@cs.com