Pharmaceuticals

SEQENS

A world-leading pharmaceutical company

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72%Less batch scrap from centrifuge and pump faults
68%Less unplanned downtime of key fluid equipment
11.2pointsHigher OEE

About the customer

SEQENS is one of the world’s leading pharmaceutical solutions and specialty ingredients companies, headquartered in Lyon, France. The company offers a portfolio of over 200 active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), 500 drug intermediates, and critical specialty ingredients and chemicals.

The challenge

At Seqens Pharmaceuticals, the production process involves multiple critical stages, including raw material preparation, reaction, separation and purification, concentration, freeze drying, and packaging. Equipment such as centrifuges, recirculating/feed pumps, chillers, and air compressors are essential to ensuring product quality and continuous production.

Centrifuge: Used for solid–liquid separation, operating at high rotational speeds with extremely high dynamic balance requirements. Vibration abnormalities can directly affect separation efficiency and product purity.

Recirculating/Feed Pump: Provides stable flow and pressure to reactors and filters, and flow fluctuations may result in incomplete reactions or excessive impurity levels.

Chiller: Provides cooling for low-temperature reactions, storage, and freeze-drying processes, and temperature stability directly affects the activity of pharmaceutical ingredients.

Air Compressor: Supplies compressed air to pneumatic valves and certain process equipment, and insufficient or interrupted pressure may cause production shutdowns.

Production Continuity and Compliance Risks

Failures in critical equipment can interrupt production, cause batch scrap, and even impact GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) compliance.

High Shutdown Costs

Shutdowns of centrifuges or chillers require complete cleaning and revalidation, delaying production and increasing consumable costs.

Delayed Maintenance Response

Relying on manual inspections or scheduled vendor maintenance makes it difficult to detect early vibration or temperature abnormalities.

Challenges in Managing Multi-Brand Equipment

Different equipment origins, structures, and operating modes create management complexity, and the absence of a unified health management platform reduces maintenance efficiency.

Monitored equipment and installation

Sensors on the pump bearing caps and the motor

Value

Direct losses avoided each year

RMB 120M+

Losses avoided

The plant reported more than RMB 120 million a year in direct losses avoided.

Early warning on bearings

DHMSCare's AI warned of early faults such as rolling-bearing outer-race wear 4–72 hours ahead.

Faster response, fewer offline tests

Response to an alert now comes within 15 minutes, and offline testing fell by 30%.

Products and deployment

Software ProductDHMSCare - AI Care Version
Terminal ProductDHMSCare wireless vibration and temperature sensors and smart gateways
Monitoring scopeCentrifuges, circulation pumps, feed pumps, feedwater pumps, chillers, air compressors and more