MTS – Drum to Drum Transfer with Flexible Glovebag

The Rheo Material Transfer Station is a small footprint workstation that improves operator safety and efficiency during the material transfer and weighing process. The operator workstation with the integrated drum tipper provides a compact, GMP, ergonomic means of transferring material.

The Material Transfer Station with Flexible Glovebag Containment is designed for highly contained, closed transfers for highly toxic products and APIs. Containment levels of 5-0.01 µg/m³ can be achieved via the integrated flexible isolator system.

Rheo has conducted performance verification tests on the Material Transfer Station. The tests showed excellent results for each of the different configurations tested. Copies of the executive summary, full reports, and supplemental documentation are available upon request.

The Drum to Drum configuration is used to transfer materials between drums in order to repackage the material into a more GMP container or to pre-weigh a material kit using the integrated scale. The newly packaged drums can then be transported to a manufacturing space for batch processing.

The Drum to Drum Transfer Module is designed to hold the receiving drum liner so product can easily be transferred into the receiving drum. For Flexible Closed Transfer Containment, the glovebag will be band-clamped to the top ring of the transfer module and a continuous liner, or a drum liner, can be attached to the bottom ring. Using this process to provide containment has been documented to keep operator particle exposure to 5-0.01 µg/m³. The containment module can rotate up to help with the bag changeout using a cut-and-crimp process.

The integrated weighing system provides a compact solution for the weighing and dispensing operation. The weighing module that holds the receiving container is isolated from the workstation to provide excellent weighing accuracy.

The typical integrated weighing system includes the following features:

•     150 kg Weighing Capacity
•     Mettler Toledo IND570 or IND560X Readout
•     4x Mettler Toledo Load Cells
•     Weigh Accuracy to +/- 50 grams (higher accuracy, low capacity options are available)
•     Can be Integrated with Computer, PLC, or Printer

To increase the utility of this equipment, Rheo has developed a quick and easy change over from an open transfer system (that uses a dust extraction device to capture fugitive dust) to a high-containment system that uses a flexible Restricted Access Barrier System (RABS). This modular design offers two levels of containment controls to accommodate the full span of compounds.

Transfer Modules are also designed to be quickly replaced in order to change between different types of receiving containers (example: change from a Drum to Drum Transfer Module to a Drum to Bag/Bottle Transfer Module).

By designing around an analysis of operator movements during the drum charging process, an unmatched level of safety, operating simplicity, and functionality is achieved. A drum can be raised, lowered, and tipped into the proper position by using a single hand or foot control. This approach to drum handling allows the operator to easily control the product flow during the entire charging process.