Syrups, Vials and Dropper Bottles galore!

Scotland's burgeoning pharmaceuticals industry uses vials, syrups, dropper bottles and similar glass containers in vast quantities. So being able to purchase quality examples of these at highly competitive prices could bring dividends for customers of packaging container specialists Johnsen & Jorgensen.

J&J, which serves Scotland from its recently expanded depot in Glasgow, has announced an agreement with Gujarat Glass (P) Ltd to supply the Indian company’s comprehensive range of pharmaceutical glass products in the UK.

Gujarat Glass is one of the world’s largest producers of glass containers, with an annual turnover of over $60 million. The company has state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities at Jambusar and Kosamba, is ISO 9001 quality assurance and ISO 14001 environmental standard certified, and its 27 modern, high-speed lines output seven million bottles and vials a day. Each facility is powered by its own natural gas energy plant.

Container sizes from 2ml to 2500ml

The company’s comprehensive range extends from 2ml to 2500ml, in various shapes and designs. Boston rounds, wide-mouth packer bottles and jars for tablets, DIN 18 neck dropper series, syrup bottles, type I, II and III vials and large bottles for acids and other chemicals are among the types manufactured.

There are 23 sizes and types in the type I flint vial range alone, from 2ml to 540ml capacities. The amber-coloured syrup series in type III glass also numbers 23 varieties, from 30ml to 500ml.

J&J sales director Jon Wear said: ‘I am pleased and excited about this deal, which means that our customers will benefit from high quality bottles and vials at competitive prices. Gujarat Glass for their part are impressed by our ability to effectively market our suppliers’ products, identify and respond quickly to customer needs, and provide speedy delivery through our UK-wide warehousing and distribution network.’

CAD/CAM design and manufacture

The agreement was announced after Jon Wear visited both the Kosamba and Jambusar facilities. He said: ‘No-one could fail to be impressed by Gujarat Glass’s CAD/CAM systems, and their mould workshops include CNC machines. Triple and quadruple gob blow production and camera-detection fault-on-line systems are installed. These deliver mass-volume output at high speed while maintaining rigorous quality standards.

‘Where appropriate, production takes place in a tightly controlled clean air environment, with filtration of 5 microns and humidity of 55 to 65 RH. The company also places great emphasis on skills training. Employees are actively encouraged to keep abreast of the latest technologies and implement new ideas and processes.’

Quite apart from pharmaceutical industries, the Gujarat Glass range of bottles will also appeal to manufacturers and bottlers of aromatherapy products, oils, adhesives and other chemicals.

Total supply chain management

J&J supplies containers for its three core markets: personal care, toiletries and pharmaceuticals; food, drink and giftware; and industrial products and chemicals. The company holds over 2,500 types of pack in stock for just-in-time delivery - or will have packs specially designed and made. Containers can be purchased in volume to provide economy-of-scale cost savings, held in controlled-environment storage and delivered in whatever quantities are needed to meet just-in-time production schedules.

6th Jan 2005