A market research project
on the demand of plastic packaging for pharmaceutical
products conducted by Frost & Sullivan,
has concluded that new drugs and formulations
would provide the catalytic growth to plastic
packaging all over the World but more so in
the developed economies. In fact, US is expected
to increase its pharmaceutical packaging for
plastic end products from a level of US$2.6
billion in 2004 to US$3.4 billion in 2011, showing
a healthy annual growth of about 4%. This growth
is higher compared to the GDP growth and therefore
should be considered as very positive for plastic
packaging in pharmaceuticals. This growth is
essentially attributed to newer types of products
both in bulk drug category as well as in formulations.
Drug delivery systems such
as nasal sprays, inhalers, trans dermal patches
and oral ingestion are redefining the market.
Nasal sprays and inhalers are likely to contribute
to almost one-fourth of the revenue growth in
the near future. Biologic drugs and quick dissolving
tablets are increasing the need for high barrier
packages. A shift from vials and ampoules to
pre filled syringes has been seen because of
their ease of use and convenience.
Biologics-based drugs � which are particularly
sensitive to moisture, oxygen and light � require
high barrier packages, and this is driving up
the adoption of blister packaging, which is
widely used in Europe but is less popular in
the US. The market share of blister packaging
will also rise on the back of increasing recognition
of the positive impact it can have on patient
compliance.
The growth in the pharmaceutical packaging market is being buoyed by an increase in the acquisitions of existing companies by new entrants, as well as increasing prescription scripts, resulting in growth in unit pharmaceutical sales. The rise in the ageing population is stimulating demand for packages that are simultaneously convenient for elders to handle and are child-resistant.
The pharmaceutical manufacturers
and converters are concentrating on down-gauging,
as well as reducing package thickness and raw
material consumption, without compromising on
the product quality, and by improving the processes
and technologies implemented. Cost reduction
gains greater importance among pharmaceutical
companies as there is a drop in the number of
expected blockbuster drugs in the pipeline and
many of drugs are going off patent.
Pharmaceutical manufacturers are increasingly becoming involved in the design process to devise means to curtail the damages during transit in case of mail order and Internet pharmacies, and are adopting innovative designs to make their products attractive. The drug industry has also started to look at implementation radio frequency identification (RFID) tags in packages to overcome counterfeiting and in addition for tracking and managing inventory across the supply chain. |
