Not everyone is comfortable or even capable of swallowing hard forms of medicine, like pills or tablets. For these people, softer alternatives are manufactured in the form of caplets, in which gelatin membranes contain powdery medicine formulas. In this form, the medicine is softer on the mouth and can generally pass more easily down the throat with water.
Caplets are all made possible by the magic that occurs in pharmaceutical labs, where air compressors make the following things materialize:
– Contents: Contained within each gel cap are powders that comprise the medicinal content of a given caplet type. Whether it’s a caplet for headaches, indigestion or sinus symptoms, the powdery contents are mixed in a lab on equipment powered by compressed air.
– Gels: The dry gel that holds each caplet into form is also a marvel of lab capabilities, since it consists of ingredients that have to be mixed to an exact formulation, spread to a certain thinness and dried to a particular consistency. With compressed air, all these steps are accomplished quickly and easily.
– Packaging: In order for gel caps to be sold in pharmacies or over the counter, they need to be packaged in a manner that protects their delicate texture. Some brands sell caplets in medicine bottles, whereas other caplets are sold in blister packets. Either way, much care goes into the packaging of caplets, and compressed air technology makes this possible.
The production of caplets has long been one of the great innovations of the pharmaceutical industry. On the air-powered production lines of today, caplets can be produced in bulk quantities and packaged a whole lot faster than ever before. With compressed air, the entire process meets sanitation and environmental standards with flying colors.
