New Corning products reduce waste, carbon emissions in pharmaceutical supply chain

© Corning International

New products from Corning International will reduce waste and carbon emissions in the pharmaceutical supply chain, the company said last week.

On July 13, the company launched Corning Viridian Vials, a new offering in the pharmaceutical glass-packaging portfolio. New technology in the vials can improve filling line efficiency by up to 50 percent, the company said, while reducing vial-manufacturing carbon-dioxide-equivalent CO2e emissions by up to 30 percent.

“Corning continues to push the boundaries of glass technology to help our customers tackle their most complex challenges,” Ron Verkleeren, senior vice president and general manager, Corning Life Sciences, said. “Viridian Vials’ cutting-edge coating technology allows our customers to deliver medications safely and efficiently – for both patients and the planet.”

The new vial technology will help drug manufacturers meet their sustainability goals while enabling faster and safer filling-line operations, the company said.

Because injectable medicines play an increasingly important role in global health, demand for those medicines is on the rise, officials with the company said. In turn, pharmaceutical manufacturers are looking to increase production efficiently while reducing the environmental impact of their supply chain.

Corning officials said the Viridian Vials use 20 percent less glass than conventional glass vials, without impacting the quality or safety of the vial. The reduction in glass decreases the total amount of glass entering the waste stream and lowers manufacturing and transportation-related emissions by up to 30 percent. A low-friction external coating minimizes breakage while improving efficiency, the company said.

“With Viridian, we’ve created a drop-in solution that’s compatible with today’s equipment and standards – and that helps our customers achieve their sustainability goals,” Verkleeren said.

The exclusive distributor of Viridian Vial Technology will be West Pharmaceutical Services, the company said.