Case Study

Sanya Garg
TYBBA- J046

Questions
1. summarize the case

Ans. The article talks about creating a pharmaceutical plant layout that helps minimize cost as
well as have effective cleaning and maintenance. It also discusses the features that are
important for safety, efficiency and management. The advantages of a good pharmaceutical
plan are also discussed in detail in the article.

2. What features are specific to the pharmaceutical for layout?

Ans. According to National Agency for Food and Drug Administration (NAFDAC), your proposed
layout and design should aim at minimizing the risk of errors and permit effective cleaning and
maintenance in other to avoid cross-contamination, build-up of dust or dirt and in general, any
adverse effect on the products.

The best way to achieve this goal is to design the layout in such a way that it follows a logical
order corresponding to the steps of the operation.

A good pharmaceutical plant layout should possess the following characteristics-

-There should be adequate floor space for machines installation and utilization
-The machines should be properly arranged to facilitate minimum material handling is necessary
for low cost processing.
-The layout should facilitate smooth and continuous flow of production process from one point to
another without any form of delay
-It must incorporate adequate health, safety and security features such as first aid box, fire
extinguisher, emergency exit and access point
-A good layout should allow effective supervision, coordination and control of the production
processes
-There should be room for adjustment and modifications whenever the need arises.

3. What impact will location have on the layout of the pharmaceutical manufacturing plant?

Ans. Your ability to select appropriate location is important as it-

-partially determines your company’s level of operating and capital costs,

-determines the nature of investment costs to be incurred,
-fixes some of the physical factors of the overall plant designs for instance heating and
ventilation requirements, storage capacity of raw material taking into consideration their local
availability, transportation need for raw materials and finished goods, power needs ,cost of
labours, taxes, land construction, fuel, etc

4. What are the new technologies which are used for improving the manufacturing in the
pharmaceutical industry?

Ans. The use of artificial intelligence and machine learning in pharmaceutical companies has
helped accelerate drug delivery and automation in the manufacturing process. Pharma industry
has flexible production such as single-use technology reduces downtime in production and
steps associated with it. Moreover, the rise of 3D printing has forced pharmaceutical companies
to rethink their way of production.

5. What are the differences in layout of medicines and medical equipment?

Ans. (Product vs process)

Medicines: Uses a product layout- A product layout, like assembly lines, is a manufacturing
system in which workstations and equipment are arranged along the production line. Typically, a
conveyor is used to transport work units along a line. At each of the line's work stations, tiny
amounts of work are completed.

Medical Equipment: Makes use of a process layout- A process layout is a design for a plant's
floor plan that tries to maximize efficiency by grouping equipment by function. Material flows,
inventory handling, and inventory management should all be planned to eliminate waste in the
production line. Departments differ, as do skill sets, and each employee is required to have a
specific set of skills.