A pharmaceutical, healthcare and converting sectors equipment sourcing service has been launched to search for the best available in pharmaceutical and related machinery for its customers.

A new pharmaceutical sourcing service has been launched by Isopak Limited to complement its existing role as a leading UK distributor of equipment to the pharmaceutical, healthcare and converting sectors. The new facility now offered by Isopak has the ability and tenacity to search if necessary the world for the best available in pharmaceutical and related machinery for customers. Isopak only launched the sourcing service in June and already it has benefited two customers.

In each case managing director Robin Davies and his team were set differing challenges by a pair of top companies, both leaders in their respective fields - and for each Isopak came up trumps.

''We are becoming highly proficient in sourcing equipment for our customers and making sure they get the best possible deal,'' said Davies.

The first test was set by one of the world's leading manufacturers and distributors of microbiological culture media and diagnostic products which, because of commercial sensitivity has to remain anonymous.

The company was buying a big new blister line and needed a complementary banding machine and link conveyor system to accompany it.

Enter Isopak with a brief to provide the best available at the most competitive price.

The banding machine, needed to collate cartons into 10s before banding them for easy placement into a shipper, proved no obstacle.

''We found a second hand machine from a reputable dealer, refurbished it and supplied it at a price which was well within the client's budget,'' said Davies, who then turned his attention to the second aspect of the project and, using Isopak's wealth of contacts, quickly came up with a conveyor system which would feed from the blister machine's cartoning discharge point to the bander.

''We specified the whole system, agreed it with the customer, sourced it from a reputable supplier at a competitive price and managed the whole project right through to delivery and commissioning.

We had to find high-friction belts to prevent carton movement at the labelling point with transfer to a low friction belt at a point where a cross-pusher turned cartons through 90-deg on to another conveyor linked to the banding machine.'' Then it was on to the second challenge set by a manufacturer and supplier of homeopathic, herbal and alternative treatments - again commercial sensitivity prevents identification.

''They wanted a compact, hand-fed machine - the installation situation was a bit tricky and needed a little thought because of the small space available next to a tube filler, the difficulty of access along narrow corridors and the need to cope with cartoning three different tube sizes,' said Davies.

The company also wanted to use the machine to pack a range of bottles and had little scope for improving access in an old-type factory.

So it was persuaded to take two refurbished machines instead of one, with Isopak ensuring the system was going to work well before carrying out the remedial work, positioning the machines on site and training the customer's operatives to operate the new system.

Isopak can handle almost any sourcing project and because it works hard to keep overheads to a minimum, customers can be assured of the best possible deal.

* About Isopak - Isopak is firmly established as a leading UK supplier of equipment to the pharmaceutical, healthcare and converting industries.

Isopak's growing reputation is built on its ability to supply an extensive range of quality products for these sectors.

The company is a distributor of Rotomac machines in the UK.

Rotomac, an Italian based manufacturer, is renowned throughout the world for the provision of competitively priced machinery of the highest quality.

The range includes rewinders, complete packaging lines, aluminium container lines, and dies and is successfully used in more than 40 countries worldwide.

The company is the sole UK distributor of the Dott Bonapace range of equipment, a high quality range of machines suitable for a variety of different applications.

Machines offered include tablet presses, blistering units, capsule processing and filling, suitable for a wide range of applications.