QPSI Adds Vision Systems

QPSI (Moonachie, NJ) has upgraded inspection across five manufacturing facilities with the addition of new bar code verification and vision inspection technology.

Since the rollout last year of 100% electronic verification on primary and secondary packaging lines, the contract packager has realized benefits in reduced labor costs and increased line productivity.

QPSI selected technology from two suppliers: the iVu Image Sensor system from Banner Engineering Corp. (Minneapolis), and the DataMan image-based sensor solution from Cognex Corp. (Natick, MA).

The systems are installed and validated at five QPSI plants, which are located in New Jersey; Memphis, TN; Mechanicsburg, PA; and Edwardsville, IL.

“We sought to upgrade our inspection capabilities in support of our continuous improvement business model, for meeting tougher FDA quality requirements as well as customers’ expectations,” says James Wozniak, vice president, operations.

“These enhancements ensure that we are on the forefront in quality, with the most advanced inspection technology available,” Wozniak adds.

QPSI was employing 200% human verification for many inspection tasks. The new systems add redundant inspection capacity to a Keyence Vision System, besides enabling new inspection functions on the lines.

QPSI has used Keyence’s solution for OCR/OCV, blister tablet inspection, color verification, and UV presence.
The Cognex and Banner systems are deployed across seven primary packaging solid dose filling lines and 16 secondary packaging lines.

“As new packaging projects come on line, we will implement these solutions on an as-needed basis,” says Karin Kopitskie, quality assurance manager.

“We try to automate our processes as much as possible. Checkweighers integrated for auto rejection are used on many of our lines. We look for the best inspection solution for a particular application,” Kopitskie adds.

Banner’s iVu system supports functions including pattern matching and area inspection. An area-in-motion function verifies inspected areas as packaging is rotated during packaging.

“The Banner iVu is a powerful and flexible system in which the vision-based imager, controller, and a display screen are self-contained in one unit. Multiple inspection tasks can be performed in one camera field of view,” says Michael Mariani, corporate engineer.

“The display provides real time feedback, and we can down load via Ethernet connection for tracking metrics,” Mariani adds.
At the Edwardsville, IL, facility, for example, two Banner systems are deployed on each of four secondary packaging lines, checking for label presence and placement, and verifying lot code accuracy.

QPSI lines are configured with the ability to either automatically reject product or lock down depending on the type of error discovered. If printing errors are detected, items are blown off the line while maintaining full line speed. Lines lock down with the detection of a foreign code or three consecutive printing errors.

QPSI challenges the inspection systems by introducing known failures in hourly line inspections, Kopitskie says.
“With 100% automated inspection, we can detect problems immediately and rectify them quickly after the audible and visual alarms go off. The need to inspect all upstream product after a defect is discovered in manual inspection is minimized or eliminated,” Kopitskie says.

QPSI designed, engineered, and validated the systems as plug-and-play portable equipment that is easily swapped between lines and sites. Systems’ PLCs are programmed to flexibly interface with the controls of a blister packager or cartoner.
“We needed a flexible solution that supports the intermittent production requirements of contract packaging. Cameras and sensors can be boxed and shipped to another facility within 24 hours,” says Mariani.

“The camera is then interfaced with the machine via a generic IO set up, and the new inspection task is taught with minimal programming required,” Mariani adds.

QPSI achieves improved logistics by moving the inspection modules to lines at facilities closest to customers’ manufacturing. Inspection processes are rendered uniform when customers are running packaging at multiple QPSI plants.

QPSI has quantified improvements in line up time and labor savings with the new inspection capacity.

“We are reducing incidences of human error, which relates to quality and production efficiency. We have realized 10 to 25% labor savings, while allowing line workers and inspectors to focus on other critical aspects of the packaging process,” Wozniak says.

In one topserting application for a pharmaceutical customer, line speeds were increased to 90 ppm from 60 ppm.

“This represents a full 50% line speed increase, in conjunction with an increased quality inspection confidence level. In addition, each verification system provides, on average, a two-person labor reduction,” says Kopitskie.