TABLET TOOLING

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CONTENTS
Tooling Standard
Types of Tooling
Material of construction of Tooling
Design of Tooling
Coatings on Tool and Its Application
Special Design Aspects
Procedure for verification and inspection of tooling at the time of
receipt

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 Tablet compression tooling can be considered as the heart of tablet
compression work as the whole future work will depend on the
tooling selection and maintenance of it.
 Tablet diameter and shape are determined by the machine tooling
used to produce them - a die plus an upper and a lower punch are
required. This is called a tooling.
 Tablet compression tooling is in intimate contact with the tablets
during compression. Smoother tablet production can be achieved by
using robust tooling. Selection of tooling material is based on the
type of product and past experiences.

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TOOLING STANDARDS
There are mainly two standards for tooling-
1. American standard [TSM standard which was
previously known as industrial pharmaceutical
technology standard (IPT standard)].
2. European standard [Euro standard].

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 Differences between EU standard and TSM/IPT (Tableting
specification manual / Industrial pharmaceutical technology)
standard are as below,
PARAMETER EURO STANDARD TSM / IPT
STANDARD
Punch over all length 133.60 mm 133.35 mm

Head Thickness 9.09mm 10.31mm

Inside head angle 30 ° 37 ° - B Tooling

30 ° - D Tooling

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TYPES OF TOOLINGS
 BB
 B
 D
 DB
 Generally “B” and “D” type of tooling are used

TOOLING
PARAMETER
B Tooling(mm) D Tooling(mm) BB Tooling(mm) DB Tooling(mm)

Punch Diameter (mm) 19 25.4 19 25.4

Die Diameter (mm/inch) 30.15/1.187 38.1/1.50 24/0.945 30.15/1.187

Punch Length (mm) 133.60 133.60 133.60 133.60

Max tab size (mm) 16/19 25/25 13/14 19/19

Round/Capsule
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MATERIALS OF CONSTRUCTION OF TOOLING
Material generally used for punches are :
 OHNS
 S7
and for Die is
HCHC ( high carbon high chromium)
Generally S7 is preferred over OHNS as OHNS have poor tooling life
compared to S7 grade steel.

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Sr. OHNS grade steel- standard
Premium grade steel-S7
No steel
Oil hardened non shrinkage
1 Shock resistance steel S Series
steel
Molybdenum 1.4 % so reduced
2 Molybdenum is absent
susceptibility to brittleness.
Chromium 3.25 % adds remarkable
Chromium 0.5 % poor
3 resistance to oxidation and corrosion.
corrosion resistance
Resistance to oxidation and corrosion.

OHNS wears out due to low Due to high wear resistance characteristics
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wear resistance characteristic. it support high speed machines.

Poor tool life compared to

5 Good tool life.
premium grade steel.

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DESIGN OF TOOLING

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 There are many types of coatings and treatments available that can
be applied to tool steel to enhance tableting tooling punch die sets
for tablet press.
• CrN ( chromium nitride) coating
• HCP (Hard chrome plating)
• M.CrN ( Multi layer chromium Nitrite coating)
• TiN (Titanium nitride)
• Diamond- Like carbon (DLC) coating.
• Teflon coating

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COATINGS ON TOOLING AND APPLICATIONS
1. HARD CHROME PLATING (HCP):-
 This is a low temperature electrolyte chrome plating process which can deposit a
protective coating of hard chrome on to a variety of base materials to produce an
attractive hard wearing low
Advantages of HCP Coating: -
 High hardness
 Excellent surface finish.
 economical for thin deposit.
 Superb abrasion resistance.
 Very low friction.

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2. Chromium Nitride (CrN) coating.

The advantage of CrN coating are same as hard chrome plating, but it is
more effective for sticking problems. The cost of CrN is higher as
compared to Hard chrome coating.
3. Multi layer chromium Nitrite coating(M.CrN).

This is an advanced version of CrN coatign.it offers better results than CrN
in case of sticky product.
4. Teflon coating:

It is very effective for sticking problem. But durability of teflon coating is

questionable. It also gives a dull / matt finish on the cavity which results to
poor finish on tablets.

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SPECIAL DESIGN ASPECTS
Tapered die bore:
 Capping is a main problem associated with the tablets due to air entrapment while
compressing the granules. To overcome this problem tapered die bore is used to escape
the air from the granules moreover this tapered end will reduces the ejection force and
smoother ejection of the tablets from the die bore is achieved.

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Bakelite relief:
 Sometimes sticky materials adhere to the die bore which causes problems like weight
variation. Bakelite relief, a sharp lower edge of lower punch tip helps to scrap this
adhered material and cleans the die bore which is necessary for smooth lower punch
movement.

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 Multiple tip tooling : It is used to increase the tablet output using the same
number of tablet presses. Thus it reduces the operating cost. Fabrication of these types
of tooling requires high degree of accuracy and precision.

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Rotating Head Punch
 The rotating head is a two-part punch configuration. The head of the punch rotates
independently to the keyed punch body. These types of punches bear less wear due to
individual movement of punch head from the body in spite of having fixed key
positions. Thus, overall working force reduces between punch head and cam tract key
positions.

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 Carbide tipped punch :
It is required when abrasive granules are required to be compressed. These
punches improve tablet quality and enhance tool life. Carbide and ceramic
lined dies are preferred when abrasive or acidic products are compressed.
These dies are fabricated by bonding carbide inserts to the steel casings.

 Punch bellows and drip cups:

are used to prevent product contamination by lubricants like grease and oils
during compression. They are made from silicone material and having
colour according to the regulatory requirements

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PROCEDURE FOR VERIFICATION AND INSPECTION OF
TOOLING (PUNCH & DIES) AT THE TIME OF RECEIPT
 Check the no of punches and dies received against the indent.
 Check each set for manufacturing date, supplier, identification, serial
number and size.

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 Remove the layer of grease/ oil by immersing all punches and dies into
absolute IPA (100 %) and clean with the help of clean dry lint free cloth.

 Wipe the punches and dies with lint free cloth and die bore by inserting
cloth into it.

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 Components and its Application:
 Digital dial gauge
It is used in conjunction with bench comparator and has least count of 0.01
m. the pointer anvil is used for checking die concentricity and cup depth,
whereas the ball anvil is used for checking punch concentricity and overall
length.

Digital dial gauge

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COMPONENTS APPLICATIONS IMAGE

It is used for holding punches and

dies for checking their
V block
concentricity using dial gauge and
bench comparator.

Magnifying glass for inspection

Magnifying Glass
punch tip faces.

It is precision machined jig for

checking of any shape tooling for
Die punch checking jig
their concentricity. Supplies for D
& B Type of tooling.

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COMPONENTS APPLICATIONS IMAGE

It is precision machined component

used for setting standard overall
Height gauge
length of a punch on the bench
comparator.

It is used for measurement of

Bench comparator with overall punch height, cup depth,
stands concentricity of punches and dies.

Available for B & D types of

tooling and are used for checking
Head go / no go gauge
punch head dimensions such as
thickness inside head angle.

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 INSPECTION OF PUNCH AND DIES
Punch height: check the deviation in height with respect to standard, using
dial gauge.

Tip diameter: Check with the help of vernier caliper.

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 Tip body surface: check visually for scratches, damages surface, finish
crack pits and spots.

 Tip edges: check visually for damages, cracks, sharpness and burr.

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 Embossing: check visually for letters flattering of letters burr roughness
and cracks.

 Break line: check visually for position flattening roughness and deep score.

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 Key (Upper punch): for shape other than round, check for scratches
damages and surface finish.

 Punch head: check the punch head with the head GO/NO Go gauge.

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 Die Inner diameter: check with the help of vernier caliper.

 Die height: check with the help of vernier caliper.

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 Inner surface: check visually for scratches, damages surface, finish crack pits and spot.

 Body surface (upper and lower): Check visually for surface finish level, uniformity
edges.

 Check visually for surface finish level, uniformity edges.

 Check the punches and dies for any physical damages using magnifying glass.

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 USAGE AND CARE OF TOOLING
 PUNCH / DIE POLISHING
 Accessories are require to polishing as below.
Here the some example.

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 PUNCH / DIE POLISHING.
Polishing of the punch and dies shall be done as & when required in
following condition.
 There is burr or roughness on punch tip.
 Punch tip turns black.
 Sticking or picking problem is observed during compression.
 Appearance of tablet becomes dull.
 Die bore surface becomes black.
 Corrosion of tablets is observed.
 Capping of tablet is observed.

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 Tooling care @ 7 Step Process

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