Pharmaceutical

Problem

It is a real nightmare for the pharmaceutical industry to get a correct weigh protocol, and even more to be sure that the correct ingredients are weighed in their correct quantity.

The first problem is that the batch quantity does not match the standard batch quantity for the product, and all quantities have to be recalculated.

Second problem is the active component. The potency of an active components determines the quantity to be weighed. It is very common you also have an excipient or filler that will fill up the quantity gap. A typical ERP system will specify the active component in 'unit active'. A LIMS system probably holds the assay value of the potency for the lot being used. With this value someone can calculate the target weight.

It really becomes a problem when the active component is too 'weak' to cover the scheduled batch quantity. The whole batch now needs to be recalculated according this limiting component. 

Solution

This is a textbook example of retrieving information from different systems, link them, execute a calculation on it and transfer the result to the person who needs the information.

Bottom line?

You could make a big calculation how many efficiency gain you get. But a pharmaceutical, who's production cost is only 15% of his total cost, is not really interested in this.

A pharmaceutical is more interested in the quality improvement, or in the reduction of 'bad' product on the market. If one mistake causes the death of one person, then the cost will exceed factor 1000 the investment to avoid it.