SCHOTT glass responsible for almost 95 pc of COVID-19 vaccine packaging in India: German envoy

The visit is a part of the German Ambassador's two-day trip to Gujarat in which he is visiting important sites. He also interacted with the Indo-German business community.

The Ambassador undertook a tour of the factory, talked to employees and learnt about core aspects of pharmaceutical glass production.

SCHOTT Glass India is part of the technology group SCHOTT with headquarters in Mainz, Germany. According to a SCHOTT release, the company has a long history of producing specialty glass for more than 130 years and "is a global leader in pharmaceutical glass manufacturing".

"SCHOTT Jambusar is a state-of-the-art facility that produces the best specialty pharma glass in the world, specially the glass used for COVID vaccines," the Ambassador said on his visit.

"Any vaccination programme across the globe would've been very difficult without SCHOTT glass. In fact not many people know that SCHOTT glass is responsible for almost 95 per cent of COVID-19 vaccine packaging in India. I want to congratulate the SCHOTT team here as they promote a product that is German high quality and produced in India. This is a perfect example of 'Make in India' and 'Industry 4.0'. I am proud Germany is a vital part of this partnership," he added.

The release said that the tubing plant in Gujarat is the Asian manufacturing hub of high-quality pharma glass tubing.

"It has also been a frontrunner in the fight against COVID-19 and provided pharmaceutical glass for primary packaging to fill billions of COVID-19 vaccines worldwide. In India, almost all approved vaccines are packed in FIOLAX glass made by SCHOTT, which has been the gold standard for pharmaceutical packaging for more than a century. The material is best suited for vaccines and life-saving medications, as it avoids the interactions between containers and the drug formulation that can limit its effectiveness," the release said.

Pawan Shukla, Managing Director SCHOTT Glass India, said they were delighted to have the German Ambassador visit the premises.

"It gave us an opportunity to showcase a successful example of know-how and TOT (Transfer of Technology) from Germany to India," he said.

Commenting on SCHOTT's future expansion plans, he said, "We have recently announced an investment of 70 million Euros in the site to set up additional glass melting tanks and ensure adequate supply to the Indian pharma industry as well as neighbouring countries," he said.

The release said that the expansion in SCHOTT's Jambusar is set to create more than 225 new jobs.

"It is part of SCHOTT's commitment to invest over 100 million Euros in its Indian tubing facilities and triple the production capacity to produce FIOLAX glass tubing for domestic and export demands," the release said.

"Since August this year, SCHOTT also has a new Indian partner: Serum Institute of India, the world's largest vaccine producer and manufacturer of highly effective biologics, has bought the 50% stake in the Indian joint venture SCHOTT Kaisha from former co-owners Kairus Dadachanji and Shapoor Mistry," it added.

The joint venture is the leading Indian manufacturer of pharma packaging products such as vials, syringes, ampoules, and cartridges used to package life-saving medications, the release said. (ANI)