‘We consider the ever-evolving needs of the industry as an opportunity to do more and serve better’
Ashok Kumar Prusty, Executive Vice President, Bry-Air reveals more about his company’s offerings for the pharma sector, in an interaction with Sanjiv Das
How big is the market for dehumidification? What is the pharma sector’s share in this market? What percentage of it is catered to by Bry Air?
Dehumidification or moisture/ humidity control solutions is almost essential across all the various stages and processes of the pharma industry. Be it processing, manufacturing, storage, research and testing, or packaging, all require ideal RH conditions to be maintained and hence dehumidifiers become all the more important. Like other industries, the pharma industry too is witnessing a major shift led by changing consumer lifestyle. With people opting for a healthy lifestyle and the economy moving towards preventive healthcare, the pharma market too is undergoing a major change. And, with current regulations picking pace and being enforced by FDA, the pharma industry is all the more cautious and the focus once again has shifted to manufacturing, processing and storage of the drugs. The use of technology, systems and equipment to prevent contamination, ensure safety and hygiene during the various stages of pharma manufacturing is all the more paramount.
Therefore, humidity control or dehumidification systems, thus, becomes an integral part of the entire process till the product reaches the consumer. Pharma and food processing business accounts for 75 per cent of the dehumidification market in India. Bry-Air is a leader in this category with as much as eight out of every 10 pharma companies using our dehumidifiers for their humidity control needs.The growth is led by increase in adoption of energy-efficient dehumidification products and solutions by the pharma companies.
What are the trends in this area? How has Bry Air leveraged this?
With India holding leadership position in some of the key drugs and vaccines in the global pharma market, it is now time for us to focus on the upcoming trends. The industry needs to put more emphasis on research, innovation and enhancing the technology to serve the pharma industry better for a brighter and stronger standing of the country in the global market. Investment in latest dehumidification technologies is a necessity for the pharma companies in the country.
Since the majority of the pharma products are highly hygroscopic and tend to suffer physical, enzymatic, microbiological and biochemical deterioration after coming in contact with moisture- the loss of potency during storage influences the efficacy and safety of pharma products are some of the biggest problems faced by the sector. The task is to enhance productivity through environment control, efficiency in terms of time, cost, maintaining product quality and increase in throughput levels, followed by reduced downtime. With the nutraceuticals and other health supplement product market picking up pace in India, the requirements of customised dehumidifiers is also shaping well.
At Bry-Air, we have designed a forward-looking solution that enables the manufacturers to increase productivity at a low cost, gain higher throughput with limited resources, and reach economies of scale. Our range of best-in-class Bry-Air’s BrySmart series (BBS) Desiccant Dehumidifier are capable of delivering energy savings of upto 48 per cent, plus an additional 20 per cent through a customised rotor which reduces initial react energy input for equivalent performance of standard dehumidifiers.
What are your competitive advantages when compared to your peers?
At Bry-Air, we consider the ever-evolving needs of the industry as an opportunity to do more and serve better. Our solution-oriented approach towards humidity and moisture-control problems faced by the customer has helped us stay ahead of the curve. Over and above that, our knowledge and experience gained in over 55 years has helped us serve our customers in achieving their business goals — profitability, productivity and sustainability.
Who are your pharma clients in India and abroad?
Almost all the pharma companies (domestic, exporters, international — MNCs, Fortune 500) have Bry-Air dehumidifiers installed at their plants in India. More than 80 per cent of the dehumidifiers installed at pharma companies in India are of Bry-Air. We are proud to partner the pharma industry for over five decades and provide innovative and customised solutions to cater to their quality air requirements.
What are your plans for the Indian pharma market? How did CPhI India 2019 helped you achieve your objectives?
Today, we are talking about Machine 4.0, what it means less of human interface and more machine to machine interface. We are committed to continue to serve our customers with customised need based solutions. Our new super BrySmart (BBS) Series is built with that in mind. With 70-75 per cent of the business in the dehumidification market pouring in from the food and pharma industry and Bry-Air being the leader it is next to impossible to miss the significance of the industry platforms like CPhI. It is great platform to meet the demand and supply for the equipment manufacturing in pharma and to learn of various new advancements taking place to better align the future needs of various stakeholders.
We are happy to showcase our cutting-edge products and solutions at CPhI and be able to reach prospective customers, fellow manufacturers to collaborate and discuss the roadmap for next decade.