ConsiGma® FC Lab
The world's first lab-scale film coater for both batch and continuous manufacturing that transfers parameters directly to commercial production. No re-validation, no re-development.
1 DAY
Complete DoE in 1 day
90x
Micro-coats applied/minute
6 min
Coating cycle time/mini-batch 
-33%
Coating material vs conventional— Product overview
Designed for R&D. Built for production certainty
The ConsiGma® FC Lab brings the proven ConsiGma® coating technology to R&D. Teams can develop on the exact same platform geometry used in commercial manufacturing to accelerate the path from research to market.
— Scale-out, don't scale-up
Simple transfer from lab to production
Lab and production geometries rarely match. Process parameters drift, studies need to be repeated and regulatory risk compounds at every scale-up step.
Poor scalability
- Lab and production geometries rarely match
- Process redevelopment at each step
- Re-validation and regulatory delay
- Material waste tuning the bigger machine
Linear scale-out
- Geometrically identical platform from lab to production
- R&D parameters transfer directly to production
- Zero scale-up work or re-validation
- Minimal material waste during process transfer
Inside the ConsiGma® FC Lab
Watch the 50-seconds tour of the GEA film coater and its core features and benefits.
Today's R&D coating challenges
The pressures pharmaceutical R&D and small batch teams face today, and how the CFC Lab addresses them.
Explained by Troels Pederson, Sales Manager GEA Pharma & Healthcare
The CFC Lab design principles
How free-fall coating, identical lab-to-production drum geometry and 90 micro-coats per minute deliver scale-out coating without rework.
Explained by Mark Rowland, Director Product Management GEA Pharma & Healthcare
Get the full specifications in one leaflet
— GEA Pharma Solids Test Centers
Test before you invest
Our test centers around the world give R&D teams hands-on access to all solid dosage technologies offered by GEA. Develop, optimize, and validate your process alongside GEA specialists before committing to anything.
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Customer trials & demonstrations |
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Process development & DoE support |
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Training & continued support |
— Precision coating technology
100% coverage for every tablet
The CFC Lab coats every tablet and completes a full cycle in under six minutes. Each tablet passes through the spray zone in free fall, guaranteeing 100% coverage by design and giving you uniform, repeatable results with less than 2% weight gain on every batch.
01 Loading
Tablets are loaded directly into the coating drum. Fast, clean and simple.
02 Rotating
High-speed drum and air-knife separate and spin tablets through the spray zone.
03 Coating
Microcoat applied 1.5x/sec in free-fall for uniform 360° coverage, dries instantly.
04 Unloading
Batch fully discharged and ready for immediate packaging.— Coating capabilities
One platform for every coating type
Aesthetic coatings
Color & brand identity
Vibrant, uniform color coatings on complex shaped tablets with precise consistency across every batch; ideal for product differentiation and personalized medicine, such as minitabs.
Protective coatings
API stability & shelf-life
Barrier and moisture-protection coatings that shield the API from oxygen, humidity, and light; extending product stability and shelf-life.
Functional coatings
Controlled & modified release
Enteric, sustained-release and delayed-release coatings for precise pharmacokinetic profiles; developed on the same platform used at commercial scale.
— Ready for OEB4
HPAPI solutions
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The CFC Lab can be configured for OEB4 contained operation through the addition of BUCK containment valves, enabling safe development with highly potent APIs.
From powder to coated tablet
Fluid bed drying
Gentle, uniform drying for granules and pellets across the development range. FROM 100 GTop spray granulation
Build particle size with controlled top spray agglomeration. FROM 100 GFlexStream granulation
Pellet coating and precise granulation in one flexible module. FROM 500 GPrecision-Coater
Bottom spray precision coating for the most demanding films. FROM 500 G— Frequently asked questions
ConsiGma® FC Lab
Find the answers to your questions about ConsiGma® FC Lab
No, the process applied in the CFC Lab is the same process as the one used in the ConsiGma coaters for over 15 years. Although there are key differences between this process and that of a conventional drum coater, it is not new.
Scale-up changes drum geometry between lab and production, forcing requalification and process redevelopment. The CFC Lab uses scale-out, with the same drum diameter and spray flux density as production. You add more units rather than a bigger machine, so process dynamics stay identical and re-validation is eliminated.
Yes. The CFC Lab can be configured for OEB4 contained operation through the integration of BUCK® containment valves, enabling safe development and handling of highly potent APIs.
The CFC Lab has a typical operating range from 0.5kg to 1.5kg of tablet cores.
A mini-batch coating cycle takes 6 minutes, applying up to 90 micro-coats per minute at a spray application rate of 1.5× per second, fast enough to complete most process development in a single day.
The CFC Lab is designed for the full range of solid dosage forms, from micro- and minitabs and round tablets through to large capsule-shaped and complex-shaped tablets. The free-fall spray geometry delivers uniform 360° coverage regardless of tablet shape and size.
Yes. The ConsiGma coating process is equally applicable to batch and continuous operations. Therefore, the CFC Lab is the development foundation for either production method. Furthermore, Process parameters developed in batch mode on the CFC Lab transfer directly to continuous production operations.
Yes. Because the CFC Lab uses the same drum diameter and spray flux density as commercial ConsiGma equipment, recipe parameters apply directly without scale-up rework or re-validation. This is the core of the scale-out approach.
The CFC-Lab can be fitted with WIP nozzles allowing a full wet-down procedure prior to dismantling for final cleaning.
Yes. The CFC Lab is a modular addition to GEA’s established AirConnect platform, offering ‘plug and play’ simplicity when switching between processes. AirConnect is available as either a movable standalone unit, or integrated through-the-wall to maximize space in the process room.
Of course. ConsiGma® coating technology is available to be tested in our labs around the world. Our process teams will be happy to demonstrate the technology and assist you in developing the process for your formulations.
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Continuous Innovation: How GEA is Leading the Future of Pharmaceutical Manufacturing
From the first ConsiGma® line in 2004 to the launch of CDC Flex today, GEA has been at the forefront of pharmaceutical innovation.
Continuous innovation is our commitment — to our customers, to the industry, and to a better world.
