Pharmacies today continue to look toward centralized fulfillment as a strategy to accommodate their growing prescription volumes, staffing issues and increased demands on pharmacists. One of the most fundamental choices in these facilities is whether to use a puck-based transport system (where containers hold and transport each vial) or non-puck transport system (where the vials travel directly on the conveyor). While puck-based systems were once the standard based on their ability to handle multiple vial sizes and RFID-based tracking, advancements in fulfillment technology have rendered these benefits less compelling. The modern non-puck systems can not only match these features but could also surpass them with other advantages.
Mechanical Complexity
Puck systems can often add mechanical complexity. Each prescription vial must be loaded to a puck, which then travels down the conveyance through multiple steps before being separated for order consolidation, where it is then removed from the puck. This design requires infrastructure to handle puck loading, unloading, cleaning and recirculation. Over time, these moving parts can create opportunities for jams, misalignment and downtime. Instead, non-puck systems allow for the vials to travel directly on the conveyance, without the need for the mechanical infrastructure that handles each vial, which can allow for greater uptime, less maintenance and smoother operations.
Space
Space efficiency becomes another factor as puck systems require additional floor space for the return loops, buffers and puck storage areas, which could limit expansion opportunities. Non-puck systems do not require the return loops, buffers and puck storage areas, so that use of available floor space can be maximized and more readily accommodate future scaling. Increasing capacity with a puck system involves the purchase of more pucks and building more infrastructure to manage them, while a non-puck system can often be expanded by extending conveyance and adding more processing units or workstations.
Cost
Not only do the puck systems require a large inventory of the actual pucks, but also extra equipment dedicated to managing the pucks. The systems require additional conveyors for order consolidation areas and separate routes for capping. Each step requires the cost of the equipment, installation and ongoing maintenance and operating expenses. Non-puck systems do not carry these extra costs, which could result in a lower total cost of ownership.
Speed and Throughput
Puck-based systems require extra processing steps including separate labeling stations, imaging stations and cappers, which can create bottlenecks. Puck accumulation tables, return loops and depucking lines can contribute to slower throughput. Non-puck systems can use integrated cameras for verification and enclosed, immediate capping right after dispensing. Vials are conveyed directly to fill stations and processed with fewer handoffs and steps, which may contribute to a shorter cycle time and greater daily capacity.
The fulfillment process using pucks is generally a linear process, completing one step at a time. Advanced solutions use synchronized fulfillment, meaning that multiple steps on one order are being completed simultaneously, which allows for the ability to scale to higher volumes.
Safety
Highly critical to the automated Rx fulfillment process are the patient safety design points. In puck-based systems, the vials move down the conveyor to be capped at another station. Prescriptions travel through open environments, which may lead to potential contamination risks. Non-puck systems can cap vials within a closed-loop, enclosed unit immediately after being filled – this design point is aimed at securing the contents through the automated environment. This approach can also help to prevent tampering, cross-contamination, and “pill jumping,” while still meeting inspection requirements through integrated imaging and canister-level verification without extra handling.
The puck-based system reads the prescription information off the puck rather than the vial’s label. Since everything is read off the puck, if the pairing step is done incorrectly, the product could be filled incorrectly. Non-puck systems read the label directly affixed to the container, where a barcode safety check is done prior to filling.
While puck-based systems were the standard for some time, the systems of today have evolved. Modern, non-puck technology has advanced to provide pharmacies with tools for higher throughput and realized efficiency, all with patient safety in mind.
