Formulation stations in AST’s R&I lab facility, the heart of the company.
January 2018 Spray 43
Construction of one of the newer buildings, “The Tower,” began
in the fall of 2009 and lasted into 2010. Originally designed
to be warehouse space, AST moved the production of bag-onvalve
(BOV) aerosols there in 2011.
In 2012, AST installed a third aerosol line in its original
plant. Currently, it has five traditional TTV (through-the-valve)
aerosol filling lines and one BOV line. There is room for a Line
Six when needed; it would take approximately six months to set
up.
In 2014, AST recognized a need for expansion and bought
two acres from a neighbor. On July 31, 2015, the company broke
ground on this new piece of land and simultaneously closed on
a property across the street, located at 200 Meister Ave. This
had previously been a flavor and fragrance facility and already
had FDA clearance. AST moved into “200” in February of
2016, and the building is an R&D hub featuring an innovation
showroom, testing salon, R&I labs and IT dept. Its facilities are
FDA, cGMP and ISO 13:485 compliant.
The heart of the business is in the labs, where AST has
developed an “innovation culture.” This allows the filler to
proactively approach customers with ideas for products rather
than waiting for customers to come to them.
“The Annex”—the building erected on the two new acres— is
the first new aerosol filling facility built from the ground up
in nearly 30 years, according to AST, who visited Spain and
France to observe European fillings, as NJ space considerations
are more analogous to those in Europe. New equipment was
ordered from the UK, as AST was very conscious of the smaller
space it would need to occupy.
Laying the foundation of the Annex was the most difficult
aspect, as it had to adhere to 21st Century safety codes. The
advantage of a new facility—as opposed to retrofitting an existing
structure—is that there is the opportunity to make the entire building
energy efficient, explained Manav Lalwani, AST Executive VP.
For example, the building features all LED
lighting (except for explosion-proof areas as
required by law). Post Hurricane Sandy (2012),
plans were allocated for a back-up generator to
fit into the new, sturdy building.
In New Jersey, where space can be tight,
space efficiency must always be considered.
For example, compounding rooms are built
above the filling rooms and rather than
pumps, gravity is used to move compounds to
the filling floor. Also on the top floor is storage,
a label room and the boiler room. Antistatic
epoxy on the floor of the lower level of
the compounding room helps eliminate any
dangerous sparks.
According to AST, the Tower and the
Annex are the tallest commercial buildings
in Branchburg, NJ. The property also sports
newly planted shrubbery and trees, walking
paths and picnic tables. This filler has come a
long way since 2003. Spray
“The Tower” was constructed in 2009/2010 and houses a warehouse and the company’s
double rotary index bag-on-valve line.