Nasal drug-delivery specialist Aptar Pharma is beefing up capacity at its Congers, New York, manufacturing plant to bring supplies of a key product closer to its U.S. customers.
The company said a new assembly machine for the child-resistant feature for nasal sprays was transferred to Congers from its plant in southern Germany earlier this year. The move will bring its manufacturing capacity closer to the target market in the U.S.
Aptar developed this particular platform after the U.S. government began requiring child-resistant packaging for any drug containing the equivalent of 0.08 milligrams or more of imidazoline, which is widely used in nasal decongestant sprays. That new rule went into effect in 2012; in 2014, Aptar rolled out its compliant nasal spray pump in the U.S., the company said.
Aptar has been active in the drug-delivery partnering realm, moving beyond its classic products into dose-monitoring inhalers. It partnered with Propeller Health to develop an inhaler that not only counts doses but deploys apps, text messages and emails to inform patients of their medication use. This "smart inhaler" puts both Propeller and Aptar in a race with Qualcomm and Novartis to develop the first integrated version.
The company also teamed up with Adapt Pharma to provide a nasal spray device to reverse opioid overdose, also using metered dosing technology.
Meanwhile, the company is remaking its supply with the new plant expansion. “Being closer to our customers continues to be of strategic importance to Aptar Pharma, and this new initiative enables us to continue to support our important North American marketplace and increase our demand reactivity,” Alex Theodorakis, an Aptar president, said in a statement.