Handok Inc. holds the completion ceremony of ‘Plaster Production Plant’

At 11 am on November 27, Handok Inc. held a completion ceremony for its new Chungbuk Eumseong factory ‘plaster production plant’. Handok Inc. secured the rights to produce ‘Ketotop’ plaster arthritis pain relief patches by acquiring the pharmaceutical division of Pacific Pharmaceuticals in 2014 and it now has retained its own production capacity by building the “Plaster production plant.”

With an initial investment of 30 billion won, Handok Inc. commenced construction of the ‘plaster production plant’ at the Eumseong factory site in June 2015, and received GMP approval from the Korea Food and Drug Administration on June 19 of this year. The plaster production plant is a state-of-the-art facility covering ​​7,632 square meters and equipped with a world class quality management system capable of producing up to 390 million patches yearly. In the future, the plant will not only produce the entire Ketotop product lineup but also a new patch system incorporating Handok’s proprietary technology that will be marketed globally.

The recently constructed plaster production plant features an advanced smart factory infrastructure incorporating environment-friendly facilities. With around 1.2 billion won invested, a regenerative thermal oxidizer (RTO) was installed which completely incinerates volatile organic compounds generated during production to prevent emission of harmful air pollutants. In order to protect workers’ health, the factory features an automatic transfer system that handles organic solvents with minimal noise and vibration. In addition, the plant is equipped with a comprehensive manufacturing execution system (MES) that integrates all information occurring at the site, a building management system (BMS), an automatic input/output system, and an automatic inspection system.

Kim Young-jin, CEO of Handok Inc., said, “With the construction of the plaster production plant we have established a base to transform Ketotop into a global brand and strengthen the competitiveness of Handok Inc.’s Eumseong factory.” He added that, “Ketotop, which has been No.1 in the domestic anti-inflammatory analgesic drug market for more than 20 years since its launch, will become a strong player in the percutaneous absorption field with its high quality and self-production capability.”

Handok Inc. has been growing at a high growth rate ever since it secured Ketotop. Ketotop’s sales in 2016 increased by more than 30% from 2015 and grew by 40% in the first quarter of this year. And just this year Handok Inc. has expanded the list of countries to which it exports to include Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam, and now plans to further expand exports all over Asia to eventually make Ketotop a top global brand.

On the other hand, Handok Inc. Eumseong factory claims a land area of ​​90,840 m² with a large-scale production facility covering ​​46,783m² that is capable of manufacturing and packaging pills, liquids for external use, and plasters. Currently, 30 types of medication for eight domestic and overseas pharmaceutical companies are being produced there. The production facilities boast world-class quality control equipment and a system that can test various formulations as well as a modern automated warehouse that stores raw materials and finished products in proper conditions. The facilities have been certified not only by the KGMP but by recognized authorities of 14 countries as well.