What Materials Are Used in Pharmaceutical Packaging?

Pharmaceutical packaging can be complex, and material selection is just one of many factors that must be considered. Selecting the correct materials is critical to not only adhere to the ever-changing regulatory requirements that exist, but also to protect products throughout their full lifecycle, from transportation and storage to their point of use. Additionally, we can’t forget the sterilization process and the rigors involved here. If a package fails at the sterilization stage, the pharmaceutical product is no longer acceptable for human use (which equates to a loss of time & money, among other things). 

From a design perspective, pharmaceutical packaging is unique because keeping a design both senior friendly and child resistant can be challenging. Again, materials can play an important role here. The bottom line is that packaging materials must perform as desired to ensure product efficacy and patient safety. My colleague, Andrea Hecker, does a nice job breaking down common materials used in pharmaceutical packaging in the PackTalk blog. Check it out here.