Purchasing new equipment in the pharmaceutical industry is an essential process that impacts the entire line of products. It affects a product's quality and defines the manufacturing process's success rate.
For the pharma industry, purchasing new equipment requires the input of all relevant departments, such as engineering, quality, and production. These departments must be actively involved in purchasing equipment until the equipment is installed correctly and is ready for production.
Let's discuss some common challenges in purchasing new equipment, but first, discuss what role different departments play when purchasing new equipment.
Role of various department in during purchasing process of a new equipment
Purchasing an equipment in pharma industry is not the responsibility of a single department, but it is a coordinated activity involving all the relevant stakeholders. These stakeholders main aim is to procure an efficient equipment that best suits the organization’s requirement.
The most critical departments in a pharma organization are Production, Engineering, and Quality, which are responsible for executing the production process with the highest quality.
Similarly, when purchasing new equipment, these departments work collaboratively, each having its distinct role and responsibility. Let’s see what the roles of this department are.
Production Department
The production department is the primary user of every pharma equipment. It devises and executes the production plan, commonly given by the supply chain department. This department also maintains and manages the production planning for specific equipment.
The production department commonly decides to purchase new equipment when it feels that the existing equipment cannot meet the market demand for a specific product.
When this happens, it can be implied that.
The equipment’s output capacity cannot meet the market growing demand, as it has reached its maximum available capacity.
The equipment is unable to process and produce a specific product. For example, equipment is unable to process biological effects.
The equipment cannot operate normally due to any defect, as declared by the engineering department.
When the production department decides to purchase new equipment, it informs the higher management, which starts the purchasing process in consultation with other departments. After approval from the higher management, the production department prepares its requirement for new equipment in a document called User Requirement Specification – URS.
Engineering Department
The engineering department is responsible for overseeing the technical aspects of the equipment being purchased. It helps the production department prepare URS for equipment aligned with the available resources and services.
Some areas that an engineering department helps include the following
Selection of equipment in accordance with the available utility services, such as power supply and steam
Prepares the area for the installation of the machine. For example, constructing areas in accordance with the dimensions of the equipment, providing the required space on the technical floor, and routing duct.
Ensures adequate safety systems are available and provided on the machine or equipment, such as machine guards and over-temperature alarms.
It ensures that the manufacturer provides adequate electrical, electronic, and mechanical components with the equipment.
The equipment manufacturer provides all the necessary engineering-related documentation, such as the operating manual and calibration procedure.
Preventive Maintenance schedule and procedure
Quality Department
The quality department ensures that the Read More
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