Associate Capsules Group—Destination zenith

In the year 1964, Daljit Singh incorporated the parent company Associated Capsules. He was later succeeded by his sons: Ajit Singh, Chairman and Jasjit Singh, Director. The group, then known as the Associated Capsules Group (ACG), ventured into manufacturing of pharmaceutical barrier packaging films, high speed capsule filling equipment and blister packing and cartoning machines. In the year 2006, the group was re-christened as ACG Worldwide. With over 40 years of experience ACG Worldwide is now organised under two business groups—the consumable products divisions comprising of hard gelatin and HPMC capsules and barrier packaging films and the engineering divisions comprising companies manufacturing high tech pharma machinery. Associated Capsules Pvt Ltd (ACPL) is amongst the world's largest hard gelatin capsule producers with three factories located in and around Mumbai. The first capsule making machines were commissioned at Kandivili, Mumbai. All the capsules plants are ISO certified and it also has DMF registration. The manufacturing units of Associated Capsules are the only ones that have been inspected by the US FDA. Available in sizes ranging from the extra large size 000 to the very special tiny size five and a host of printing options, capsules from ACPL meet global standards of quality and machine efficiency. The technology R&D centre of ACG Worldwide— SciTech Centre is based in the heart of Mumbai and focuses on providing solutions to the unique and ever changing needs of their customers in the pharma industry.

Success never come in a golden plate, it takes a lot of hard work and consistency in order to reach where the company is today. According to Shabbir Badami, Head-Corporate Marketing, ACG Worldwide, "Our main challenge was to make a product that could be encapsulated on the high tech capsule filling machines that were being used by multinationals. Associated Capsules strived towards continuous quality improvement and now manufacturers the widest range of capsule sizes in the world. We are now ranked amongst the Asia's largest manufacturers of hard gelatin capsules."

ACG Worldwide has a global presence with subsidiaries in USA (UCLLC and Pam USA LLC), UK (ACG Europe), Indonesia (PT UCI) and the Philippines (UCPI). With the recent acquisition of Lukaps in Croatia, ACG Worldwide will be able to meet the huge demand in Europe and the Russian continent for hard gelatin capsules.

Different shades

Pam, the engineering company of ACG Worldwide offers solutions in solid dosage systems, from high-speed capsule filling machines with outputs of up to 1,50,000 capsules per hour, to unique capsule fillers capable of filling powders, pellets, tablets, micro tablets and liquids in hard capsules. Pam has an installation base of over 16,000 in over 50 countries. The new high tech tablet compression systems from Pam with features like interchangeable turret and virtual zero clearance feeding system meets global standards for quality and efficiency. Recently, Pam has launched its range of new generation tablet compression systems which have features that are in line with the best in the world, informs Badami

Badami avers, "Pam has evolved through technical research and development (R&D) to manufacture some of the fasted capsule fillers in the world. Recently Pam was recognised for its excellence in equipment and service by Febrafarma, the Brazilian pharma industry federation by awarding it the ‘Best Capsule Filling Machine Supplier’. Pam is the first Indian company to get this international recognition." Empty hard capsules and encapsulation equipment are the flagship products of ACG Worldwide.

Packshield, the Packaging Films Division, caters to the market needs of PVdC duplex and triplex packaging films. It has partnered with world leaders like Alcan Packaging of Germany and Honeywell of the US to bring Formpack flexible aluminum films and Aclar transparent barrier films to customers in India. The engineering group companies Pam, Pam Pac and Pam Glatt offer the latest technologies to the pharma industry. The product range includes high speed capsule filling and tablet compression systems from Pam, sophisticated blister packing and cartoning machines from Pam Pac and high tech fluid bed systems from Pam Glatt, a joint venture between Pam India and Glatt Germany. Pam Glatt operates within India and in select international markets.

Pam Pac is a comprehensive packaging solution provider, manufacturing high-speed blister packing and cartoning systems. Their decade old association with IWKA Packaging, Germany, and the global leaders in blister packing and cartoning solutions has given them better understanding of the needs of customers, on a global perspective. They have successfully installed over 500 cartoning machines across a wide spectrum of customers.

Security solutions from ACG include Brandshield, the capsule-printing technology from ACPL that provides a variety of printing options to help prevent counterfeiting and to build brand value. Unique packaging configurations and tropical packaging systems from ACG add to the protection offered against counterfeiting and duplication.

Partnerships

ACG Worldwide has partnered with some of the global leaders like Honeywell, Alcan, Sarong, Volpack, Proditec, Brimrose and Theegarten pactec. ACG Worldwide constantly raises the bar of quality and performance with innovative new technologies and concepts.

Recently, ACG acquired Lukaps, a capsule manufacturing plant in Croatia in central Europe. With this acquisition ACG gets a strategic advantage to cater to customers in and around Europe quickly. "With pharma manufacturing outsourcing moving to India in a big way, the domestic marketplace will see a spurt in business. ACG is evaluating the market scenario and will be expanding capacities to meet the growing needs of the Indian pharma market. With the help of our offices in Europe and US we plan to gain market share there in the coming years," concludes Badami.