Hovione, an integrated specialist contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) and provider of spray drying and particle engineering services, has opened a state-of-the-art continuous tableting (CT) line at its R&D center in Lisbon, Portugal.

The new line is the result of a partnership with GEA, a provider of process technology for the pharmaceutical industry. Since announcing their partnership in 2022, Hovione and GEA have worked to advance continuous tableting technology. Their collaboration seeks to boost the adoption of continuous tableting by offering increased capacity, flexibility, standardized equipment, improved quality, and enhanced efficiency. Together, they have shown that continuous tableting can become a more accessible technology.

According to Hovione, this new R&D line is the only one of its kind in the world and it replicates the most critical components of Hovione´s state-of-the-art commercial CT line in Loures, Portugal. It also offers a high degree of flexibility in throughput and can handle highly potent active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs).  

“With this new line, we will be able to optimize operating conditions with minimum amounts of API and provide a higher technical certainty when transferring from development to commercial scale,” said Jaime Del Campo, head of R&D services, Hovione. “The flexibility of the rig and the real-time process data monitoring capabilities contribute to a more agile design and upscaling experience.”

The new CT line at Hovione’s Lisbon R&D center is now fully operational and ready to support both existing and new projects.