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In brief
Pharmaceutical handling equipment is not just about operator safety: in the pharmaceutical and chemical industry, it is a matter of GMP compliance, batch traceability and raw material integrity. A mishandled bag of active ingredient, a bottle broken on a filling line or a scratched preformed sheet is a documented quality deviation, a destroyed batch and a mandatory report. Neoditech’s manipulator arms remove the load from the operator at the source and eliminate uncontrolled contact: the operator guides the part or the container with precision, with no effort and no contamination risk.
French manufacturer since 2007, Neoditech works with demanding manufacturers including Sanofi, Aptar Pharma, Unither Pharma, Baxter, Pfizer, Merck, Fareva, Aspen and Octapharma. Our equipment is available in mobile configurations (electric wheeled base, pallet truck mounted base or floor mounted base) to fit your production campaigns and your zoning constraints.
Two solutions cover the full range of pharmaceutical and chemical use cases: the SCARA manipulator arm for precision operations in confined spaces, and the Mobile Jib Crane for inter-zone transfers and line feeding.
Why equip your pharmaceutical or chemical workshop with an ergonomic handling solution?
Raw material bags of 25 to 50 kg, crates of glass bottles, thermoformed sheets, packaging moulds, IBC containers, reagent drums: these loads are handled dozens of times per shift, across weighing, tank loading, packaging line feeding and inter-zone transfer operations. Every uncontrolled movement is a risk. To the material. To compliance. To the operator.
Zero contamination, zero damage on raw materials and finished products with high regulatory value
In pharmaceutical and chemical industry handling, a punctured raw material bag, a broken bottle or a scratched preformed sheet is never a simple production incident: it is a documented non-conformity, a destroyed batch and a quality deviation to report.
Pharmaceutical raw materials (excipients, active ingredients, powders, granules) are packed in primary packaging whose integrity is a regulatory requirement. Abrasive contact, an impact or an uncontrolled grip is enough to compromise the seal of the bag or the sterility of the container. Our grippers are built from materials compatible with food and pharmaceutical contact, primarily 316L stainless steel and FDA plastic, and matched to the exact geometry of the container being handled. The movement stays precise, repeatable and traceable, even at the end of a shift, even across varied formats.
Address musculoskeletal disorders at the source
Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) remain the leading cause of recognised occupational disease in France (Assurance Maladie). In pharmaceutical and chemical workshops, the repeated carrying of 25 kg bags, forced bending postures when loading tanks or mixers, and repetitive movements on packaging lines expose operators directly to these conditions. MSD prevention starts with removing the load from the operator at the source.
A manipulator arm cancels out the felt weight of the load. The operator guides the movement and carries nothing. The physical strain disappears at the source, and with it the risk of extended sick leave.
GMP compliant workstations open to every profile
A workstation fitted with a handling assistance solution demands no particular physical strength. In a GMP environment where operator qualification is a regulatory prerequisite, an ergonomic workstation reduces staff turnover on demanding packaging lines and makes it easier for new operators to reach competency. Women and men, junior and senior operators alike, can sustain long shifts without physical strain. It is a concrete attractiveness lever and a visible commitment to occupational health, two criteria increasingly scrutinised during GMP audits.
Mobility built for your workshops and cleanrooms
Pharmaceutical and chemical workshops face zoning constraints not found in other industrial sectors: controlled atmosphere areas and ISO cleanrooms. Our equipment can be moved from one zone to another according to your production campaigns, with no permanent infrastructure or fitting work required.
Three mobility options cover every workshop configuration. The electric wheeled base offers autonomous movement between weighing stations, loading zones and packaging lines, with no external help. The pallet truck mounted base allows simple, quick repositioning when campaigns or formats change. Floor mounting is reserved for permanent, high output stations, where maximum rigidity matters more than layout flexibility.
Unlike fixed lifting systems, our equipment preserves the flexibility of your workshops and adapts as your lines evolve, with no prolonged downtime.
Our solutions for pharmaceutical and chemical handling
Two pieces of equipment cover the full range of use cases found in pharmaceutical and chemical production. Choose based on the load, the precision required and the mobility you need.
SCARA manipulator arm
SWL up to
100Kg
Handling bags in confined spaces, inserting moulds, loading tanks.
Mobile Jib Crane
SWL up to
100Kg
Feeding production zones, handling bags and cartons.
SCARA arm vs Mobile Jib Crane comparison table
| Equipment | SWL | Typical operation | Key advantage |
|---|---|---|---|
| SCARA manipulator arm (PARTS 50 kg / TITAN 100 kg) | 50 or 100 kg | Precision handling requiring smooth, fine movement, frontal grip, confined spaces | Millimetre precision, repeatable movement, custom gripper compatible with pharma and chemical use |
| Mobile Jib Crane | up to 100 kg | Pick and place operations with movement between stations, inter-zone transfers, packaging line feeding | Maximum mobility, extended working radius, simple and robust solution |
Request a free workstation audit
Our account managers visit your workshop, review your zoning and production constraints, and recommend the right configuration.
Real-world applications in your pharmaceutical and chemical workshops
Funding your investment
There is no single scheme in English-speaking markets equivalent to France’s FIPU, but real mechanisms exist to reduce the net cost of this type of equipment.
In the UK, the Annual Investment Allowance (AIA) lets most businesses deduct 100% of qualifying plant and machinery expenditure from taxable profits in the year of purchase, up to 1 million pounds per accounting period. Full details are available at gov.uk/capital-allowances.
Comparable accelerated depreciation mechanisms exist in other English-speaking markets, for example Section 179 expensing in the United States and equivalent capital cost allowance provisions in Canada and Australia. Rules and thresholds vary by country and change over time, so we would recommend checking current figures with your accountant or national tax authority before you budget.
Why Neoditech?
Why choose Neoditech for your pharmaceutical and chemical projects?
Neoditech is both designer and manufacturer. We do not resell third party equipment: every solution is designed, built and installed in our workshops in Mouzillon, Loire-Atlantique, France. This integrated model has a direct consequence for your pharmaceutical and chemical projects: our in-house design office engineers the gripper for your specific container (geometry, material, contact constraints, cleanability requirements). Not a standard gripper adapted in a hurry: a tool built for your process, tested under real conditions before delivery.
We are used to the GMP, cleanliness and strict traceability requirements of the sector. Our grippers are built from materials compatible with pharmaceutical contact (316L stainless steel, FDA plastic) and cleanable according to your decontamination protocols. Our teams work in your workshop with discretion, adapt to your site constraints (access, clearances, campaign schedules) and provide complete technical documentation for internal validation, including CE marking and compliance with Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC.
Our references in the sector: Sanofi, Aptar Pharma, Unither Pharma, Aspen, Baxter, Fareva, Merck, Octapharma, Pfizer.
What that means in practice: the workstation assessment is free and carried out on site with no obligation. The gripper is custom designed by our in-house design office, in materials compatible with pharma and chemical use. Manufacturing takes place in France, with controlled lead times. Installation takes a few hours, with operator training delivered on site. Every piece of equipment carries CE marking and complies with Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC.
What our handling solutions don't cover
Let’s be direct: our handling assistance equipment is not suited to every case.
- Beyond 100 kg (the maximum SWL of the SCARA TITAN and the Mobile Jib Crane), an overhead crane or a dedicated lifting system is a better fit for your needs.
- If your goal is a fully automated line with no human intervention, our assistance equipment is not the right answer: it is designed for the operator who stays at the centre of the process.
- For high volume flows over several dozen metres, a conveyor or an AGV serves you better than our solutions, which cover the workstation and nearby inter station transfers.
- Finally, our equipment covers the handling of containers and raw materials, not mixing, chemical reaction or automated packaging operations themselves: the process equipment handles those steps. For environments requiring specific certifications outside our scope, we point you to the right partners from the workstation assessment stage.
Yes. Our grippers are built from materials compatible with pharmaceutical and food contact, primarily 316L stainless steel and FDA plastic. They are cleanable according to your decontamination protocols and have no retention zones that are difficult to sanitise. The technical documentation provided at delivery includes material data sheets for components in contact, usable in your GMP validation files. Every gripper is custom designed by our design office according to the specific constraints of your process.
Our equipment is designed to adapt to format changes with no prolonged line downtime. The gripper can be replaced in a few minutes depending on the container being handled: crate, bag, thermoformed sheet or bottle. For multi product lines, our design office builds modular grippers able to cover several geometries with a single piece of equipment. The goal is to preserve your production flexibility while maintaining GMP compliance at every campaign change.
This is precisely the use case where the SCARA manipulator arm is preferable to the Mobile Jib Crane. Its compact architecture lets it operate in reduced spaces (weighing rooms, tank loading zones) exactly where a jib crane cannot manoeuvre. A bag suction gripper, dedicated to this type of handling, holds the bag firmly and under control, with no risk of puncture or cross contamination. Load compensation is total: the operator guides with no effort, in an upright posture, with no forced bending.
The choice depends on two main criteria: the precision required and the mobility you need. The SCARA manipulator arm suits precision operations in confined spaces (feeding filling lines, handling thermoformed sheets, loading moulds) where repeatability of movement is a GMP requirement. The Mobile Jib Crane suits transfers between stations and between zones, when mobility matters more than precision of movement. Both solutions can coexist on the same line depending on the production phase.
There is no single scheme equivalent to France’s FIPU in English-speaking markets. In the UK, the Annual Investment Allowance lets most businesses deduct 100% of qualifying equipment costs from taxable profits in the year of purchase, up to 1 million pounds per accounting period. Comparable accelerated depreciation mechanisms exist in the US, Canada and Australia, though details and thresholds vary by country and change over time. We would recommend checking current rules with your accountant or national tax authority.
Contact us
Conclusion:
take action
Handling in the pharmaceutical and chemical industry does not have to remain a source of MSDs, non-conformities and destroyed batches. Contact our teams now for a free audit of your workstation.
Neoditech, your pharmaceutical handling equipment partner
At Neoditech, we place ergonomics, innovation and safety at the heart of our solutions, to improve your processes while protecting your operators’ health and comfort. Ergonomics and productivity are not opposites: they reinforce each other. In the pharmaceutical and chemical industry, where regulatory compliance and operator protection are non negotiable requirements, that is what we have been demonstrating since 2007, workshop after workshop, across France and Europe.
We design solutions that combine ergonomics and productivity. Our equipment enables manufacturers to improve operator safety while optimizing their production processes. Neoditech is also :
Customers supported in France and Europe
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Manipulators sold in France and elsewhere
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