Track & Trace

Pharma 4.0, a framework coined by the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE), represents the dawn of a new era for the pharmaceutical industry, a leap towards a digitized, connected and optimized future. This paradigm, inspired by the Industry 4.0 revolution, encapsulates the transformation of the pharmaceutical value chain through a broad spectrum of enabling technologies and strategic approaches.

The increasing global e-commerce market, which is in step with the changing advancements in the logistics and warehousing sectors, is responsible for the market's expansion. Sustaining the rapid expansion of the online retail sector will require maintaining sales data, guaranteeing exact timing, and tracking products in real-time throughout supply chain networks. For online retailers, being able to track items in real time has become essential. These days, 2D barcode readers are essential for controlling inventory levels and sales data.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is not only helping organizations weather the storm but also fundamentally transforming how they operate. As the global supply chain has become increasingly complex, the need for swift, informed and efficient decision-making has only become greater. AI, with its ability to analyze vast amounts of data, generate predictive insights and automate complex processes, is stepping up to meet this demand.

Serialization is assigning a unique product identifier to the smallest saleable unit that can be uniquely verifiable. Tracking is understanding the current and past locations of a serialized unit. Trace is to identify the history of all entities that came into contact with the serialized unit along the supply chain.

The way data was managed in the past was to keep on-premise IT infrastructure deployments which had problems with both pricing and performance. Adding to this was also the challenge of hiring efficient resources to manage both the systems and data deployed on premise. The data recorded in these systems was also not readily available for quick analysis and insight.

Traditionally, most RFID labels are composed of multiple layers, including a face stock, adhesive, inlay and release liner. The inlay, which typically consists of a plastic (PP or PET) substrate, houses the antenna and chip that enable the RFID technology.

The pharmaceutical supply chain is uniquely challenged by a number of problems including medication error, theft, and counterfeiting. In February 2004, the FDA issued rulings to address these problems, which are expected to have far-reaching effects. Looking to supply chain technology for solutions, one ruling requires bar codes by 2006 at unit of use and recommends that radio frequency identification (RFID) technology be fully implemented by 2007. This article examines the potential of RFID technology in the pharmaceutical supply chain, contrasting the capability of this newer technology to that of bar codes. Although RFID offers particular promise in authentication against counterfeits, the technology has potential value in a number of areas. Concerns about the cost and privacy implications of RFID are addressed.

Just as Industrial Revolution-era factory builders developed machines to mass-manufacture drugs once ground by hand, today’s pharmaceutical companies are turning to artificial intelligence (AI) to both speed and smarten the work of clinical development. AI could assist pharma companies in getting medicines to market faster. AI today not only does flashy gene-sequencing work, it’s being trained to predict drug efficacy and side effects, and to manage the vast amounts of documents and data that support any pharmaceutical product.

FDA and EU regulations, along with increasing end user demands to add flexibility and cut waste, are driving global packaging machinery growth. The global packaging machinery market continues its upward trajectory as end user demands shift with the times and legislation prompts change. That’s according to PMMI Business Intelligence’s 2023 World Packaging Machinery report, which predicts a 5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for the global packaging machinery market from 2023 to 2027, rising from $45.9 billion to 56 billion.

From pharmaceutical counterfeiting to Europe’s horsemeat scandal, 2013 saw a shift in industry and consumer requirements for product traceability. These changes are opening the door for digital print technology in terms of both packaging and labelling.

The pharmaceutical industry is one of the most regulated industries in the world, and for good reason. Medications are essential for human health, so it is critical to ensure that they are safe and effective. One way of ensuring that safety is through what is commonly referred to in the industry as pharma traceability: the process of tracking and tracing the movement of pharmaceutical products throughout the supply chain.

As part of an environmentally friendly recycling system, PACCOR, the leading international player in the packaging industry, has introduced plastic packaging solutions with digital identity provided by Digimarc Corporation (NASDAQ: DMRC). This innovation enables the correct identification of each package throughout the value chain. This is a big step into the recycling economy, because for the first time it is now possible to differentiate between food and non-food packaging and to achieve high-quality sorting.

Food processing and packaging company Tetra Pak has launched the Iberia connected experience, created in partnership with Appetite Creative, to engage consumers via QR code-enabled smart packaging.

Lorsque les biens sont équipés d’une puce RFID ou d’une étiquette RFID, ils peuvent être identifiés, suivis et localisés à tout moment. L’Intergiciel HERTZ d’Aucxis transmet les données saisies aux propres logiciels ou au POLARIS Asset Management Software d’Aucxis, où les données uniques, les emplacements et les déplacements des biens sont visualisés et gérés. La RFID vous permet de faire rapidement et précisément un inventaire, de sorte que vous avez toujours un aperçu de vos biens.

KPI reporting helps logistics leaders track operational performance against targets and make future projections. Many companies, however, struggle to efficiently gain insights, often overlooking difficult to access data sources and spending vast amounts of time manually reviewing documents, correspondence and transcripts.

An industry-wide drive towards sustainability, an uncertain economic landscape, heightened geopolitical risks, and continued digital and drug/device innovations are creating new challenges and opportunities for pharma and med tech supply chain leaders.

Ever wondered how to create a menu QR code for your restaurant or bar? The emergence of “no-touch” menus through scanning QR codes has been skyrocketing globally among restaurants and bar industry.

Authentication and consumer engagement solutions creator and longstanding AIPIA member YPB Group has launched an innovative new module, ConnectQR, to exploit the burgeoning QR code generation and management market globally, it says. It is a brand new module of YPB’s Connect™ SaaS platform, adding self-service features. It is capable of having a dramatic impact on YPB’s business, with the potential to scale both revenue and profit at speed, the company expects. Its introduction was accompanied by the launch on January 31st 2024 of a new website www.connectqr.ai .

The SignaKey code which is smaller than Data Matrix, allows you to track sterile injectable drugs — at the unit level — from container manufacturing through the supply chain, according to the developers. In addition the code could enable zero false rejects during visual inspection, a major improvement in aseptic manufacturing efficiency, it is claimed

Combating counterfeiting is high on the agenda this year. The recent surge in counterfeit Ozempic for weight loss has raised serious concerns in Europe—the fight against counterfeit demands collective action across the pharmaceutical industry. Under the EU Falsified Medicines Directive (FMD), all prescription drugs sold in the European Union are required to have an anti-tampering solution and a unique identifier, both machine- and human-readable.

Gerresheimer, a supplier of pharmaceutical and cosmetics packaging as well as drug delivery systems, and the pharmaceutical company Merck have jointly developed a solution for the use of a so-called “digital twin”. This is designed to optimize the traceability and reliability of data at critical points along the pharmaceutical supply chain. According to the companies, digital twin technology for primary packaging has the potential to transform the pharmaceutical supply chain from the ground up. Through a single network, those involved in the process are expected to benefit from full traceability and digital reliability. Process automation could lead to cost savings, quality improvements and even new business models, they said.