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Improved coding of medical kits

New ink-jet coder prints better while it saves money over previous coder for diagnostic test kits that need to be trackable.

In GBF's semi-automatic packaging line, boxes are set up automatically (right) then loaded with literature before the components
In GBF's semi-automatic packaging line, boxes are set up automatically (right) then loaded with literature before the components

One of the most difficult parts in applying for new insurance is to provide blood and urine samples for diagnostic tests. A contract packaging company in Greensboro, NC, GBF, Inc., has created a unique business in which the company designs, manufactures, and distributes diagnostic test kits to the laboratories that process them. One such kit is provided to medical professionals who actually draw the blood and ship the samples to a laboratory for analysis.

At GBF, thermoformed trays are packed with all the necessary components, including literature and instructions, then boxed for shipment to the laboratories. And because the kits contain products that have lot numbers and expiration dates, the complete kits must be coded and recorded so the company and the laboratories can trace them, in case one of the components was found to have a problem.

Each vacuum tube and needle in these kits must have lot numbers and expiration dates for tracking purposes. In the event that the primary manufacturer finds a problem and institutes a product recall, GBF’s records would enable it to contact any of the laboratories to which it shipped the subject kits.

On average, says GBF’s director of operations, Frank Eaton, the company packs and ships several hundred thousand diagnostic kits monthly. These kits can easily contain more than 30 components that a doctor or nurse uses to collect and ship the blood or urine samples to a laboratory.

Those components are all carefully packed into the cavities of a thermoformed tray on a semi-automated assembly line. When all components are in place, a friction-fit cover is applied, and the tray is conveyed to a point where the conveyor merges with another from an automatic line. This other line begins with a custom Model CFL-100 machine from MGS Machine Corp. (Maple Grove, MN) that sets up and opens the fold-and-tuck corrugated box. The box is then automatically conveyed past three literature inserters from Streamfeeder (Minneapolis, MN) that dispense into the bottom of the box an information form, an instruction sheet, and a brochure from the American Red Cross.

After the two lines merge, a worker loads the closed tray into the box and adds a pair of gloves and what’s called a transport bag. The box is then conveyed past the printhead of a S.C.I.F.I. Model 3200 ink-jet printer from Matthews Intl. (Pittsburgh, PA) that prints a single line onto the end of each box. A worker then adds a plastic cup inside the box, closes it, and packs the box vertically into a shipping case.

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