CI Systems launches configurable standard Silo Dosing Module for CI-DMS Dispensary Management System

Silo Dosing Module for CI-DMS

CI Systems, the developer of the Ci-DMS dispensary management system for pharmaceutical manufacturers, is launching a configurable standard module for bulk silo dosing. This can increase productivity, reduce labour requirements and eliminate dosing errors.

Compared with the other weighing functions for which a DMS would typically be used, silo dosing presents a different set of challenges. For example, there is a need to interface the DMS with equipment manufacturers' hardware, as well as the high-level control system for the filling mechanisms. In addition, some silo dosing systems use a track-mounted shuttle to transport the IBC (intermediate bulk container) between the various silos, while others use a stationary IBC and a system of feed tubes that deliver materials from the silos. With track-based systems, matters can be further complicated if multiple IBCs are filled concurrently. However, regardless of the silo dosing arrangement, the new module from CI Systems can be configured accordingly.

As with the other Ci-DMS modules, the new silo dosing module features a software architecture that enables the various functions to be configured individually to suit the application. The use of configurable parameters avoids the need to write bespoke code for the dosing functions, minimising the time required for implementation and qualification, as well as reducing project risk. Because of the need to interface with the dosing hardware, there will inevitably be some custom software for the interface functions, but this requirement is far less onerous than having to write the silo dosing functions from scratch.

CI Systems has an excellent track record for delivering silo dosing as part of DMS packages. The company first implemented a (bespoke) silo dosing system in 1994. More recently, the standard Ci-DMS silo dosing module has been developed, with several instances now operating successfully in a number of production plants. These have demonstrated that productivity improvements of up to 150 per cent can be achieved.

Typical applications for the Ci-DMS silo dosing module will be found in the manufacture of high-volume, high-value pharmaceutical products, where the weighing of active ingredients is already tightly controlled but there is a need to weigh materials such as starch, lactose or sugars to the same high standards. Ci-DMS can be integrated with an ERP (enterprise resource planning) system, so the silo dosing module enables silo-based inventories to be managed efficiently and reliably, with the added benefit of a complete audit trail.

Very few DMS packages include silo dosing, so CI Systems believes its new module for Ci-DMS will be of considerable interest to pharmaceutical companies worldwide.

For more information about CI Systems' Ci-DMS Silo Dosing Module,
call 01722 424100 or email sales@cielec.com or look at website www.cidms.co.uk

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