As part of the complete rebuilding of West Middlesex University Hospital, Daw has been involved in the design and building of the hospital's new pharmacy production facility
As part of the complete rebuilding of West Middlesex University Hospital, Daw Technologies has been heavily involved in the design and building of the hospital's new pharmacy production facility.
The specialist cleanroom firm won the tender from Bouygues UK, which was the main contractor for this PFI project.
Clarissa Armstrong, project leader for the hospital, commented: "This project has been both challenging and successful.
"We enjoyed working with Bouygues and Daw who supported us through the successful MHRA inspection.
"The innovative design and functionality of the cleanroom is enabling our team to deliver a high quality pharmacy service".
Steve Willis, business development manager, pharmaceutical division, for Daw UK, oversaw the design, build and documentation for the new pharmacy at West Middlesex.
Marion Taylor, senior technician at the new pharmacy, said: "Daw's reputation is a good one, so we were pleased when we heard they were on board. "Steve Willis's plans were closely tailored to reflect both the type of work we do here and the size of our staff. "His work provided most of the evidence for the regulatory authorities when we applied for our production licence and he guided both parties through the process".
"Although plans had been drawn up for the new facility," said Willis, "they were unnecessarily complex, reflecting perceived problems in relation to product workflow and staff segregation. "From the start, we worked closely with both the end users and the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority (MHRA).
"Although this is a big pharmacy, it is a relatively simple design.
"In my experience, the simpler the design, the fewer the problems encountered".
The new pharmacy production facility, which is now fully operational, boasts vinyl surfaces and incorporates Daw Clean Seal doors and Parteco pass-through hatches.
Daw Technologies holds the exclusive distributorship for Parteco products in the UK.
The facility consists of a TPN isolator suite with dedicated two stage change area, a Civas/cytotoxic suite, also with a two stage changing area, an open plan support area which serves both suites, a non sterile production area and a separate quality control and quarantine area.
The air throughout is terminally Hepa filtered. Although the facility was designed to meet ECGMP grade C, the room layouts and air change rates are such that grade B was attained.
This B rating is equivalent to ISO 14644-1 or Class 6. The facility might take part in clinical trials in the future and it would be possible to manage this extra workload by reconfiguring the equipment and altering staffing patterns. Willis explained: "I am proud to say that this project was completed ahead of schedule in just 12 weeks.
"One complication was that the suite was ready six weeks before the rest of the hospital.
"We insisted that the facility was kept running with restricted access, so that the handover to West Middlesex's eight-strong pharmacy team could be seamless. "This not only minimised disruption to clinical services, but also minimised costs, as no outsourcing was required". Marion Taylor oncluded: "Daw provided a total package consisting of full staff training, DQ, IQ and OQ documentation and maintenance manuals.
"Steve Willis even attended the two MHRA inspections, answering questions on the design, build quality and resultant documentation.
"We were awarded our Specials licence three months ago and the new pharmacy is running smoothly."
