Introduction

Pharmaceutical companies face significant product waste when using flat-bottom vials for liquid doses. High Recovery Vials (HRVs) with conical bottoms reduce this waste by enabling maximum product retrieval without overfilling. WHEATON®, a provider of laboratory consumables, conducted a study comparing HRVs to flat-bottom vials.

Study Procedure

The study compared a standard 2mL flat-bottom vial, a WHEATON 2mL E-Z Ex-Traction® Vial, and a WHEATON 2mL NextGen™ V-Vial®. The procedure involved measuring the mass of dry, filled, and emptied vials to calculate filled volume, residual volume, percent waste, and percent decrease in waste.

Study Results

Flat-bottom vials had an average residual volume of 116.9µL, while E-Z Ex-Traction and NextGen V-Vials had 2.7µL and 1.1µL, respectively. The E-Z Ex-Traction Vial reduced waste by 97.7%, and the NextGen V-Vial by 99.1%.

Study Implications

For a 50L batch, flat-bottom vials resulted in 7.8% waste, while E-Z Ex-Traction and NextGen V-Vials reduced waste to 0.2% and 0.1%, respectively. This reduction allows for more fills per batch, offering long-term savings for manufacturers, especially for high-value products.

The WHEATON Solution

WHEATON offers two HRV options: the NextGen V-Vial and the E-Z Ex-Traction Vial. The NextGen V-Vial is suitable for high-value products, offering maximum protection and waste reduction. The E-Z Ex-Traction Vial is ideal for less expensive compounds, providing standard protection and reduced waste.

Conclusion

HRVs provide significant cost savings and efficiency improvements in pharmaceutical packaging by reducing product waste and eliminating the need for overfilling. They also prevent end users from pooling residual volumes to create additional dosages.