The World Health Organization (WHO) knew that auto-disabled syringes would slow the spread of deadly diseases in developing countries. But to put the plan into action, WHO needed expert design and production support.
It turned to NNE Pharmaplan – whose innovative syringe design is now used by UNICEF.
Unsafe injection practices are a huge problem in developing countries. Syringes are often used numerous times, spreading diseases such as AIDS and Hepatitis B, and causing 1.3 million early deaths. Creating an affordable solution is a difficult process. NNE Pharmaplan engineers developed an Auto-Disabled syringe, which uses a one-way valve to make the syringe non-reusable immediately after the substance begins to leave the needle.
Putting innovation into production
To produce the syringe, NNE Pharmaplan teamed up with its client MEDECO from the United Arab Emirates. At this stage, the project required more than just production design and implementation. NNE Pharmaplan began by transferring its syringe knowledge to Abu Dhabi. Then, NNE Pharmaplan ran a turnkey project to design and build the facility. Production started in 2003 and MEDECO started delivery of Auto-Disabled syringes to UNICEF in 2004.
The syringes proved highly effective. With UNICEF placing additional orders, the production facility was expanded in 2006 and 2007 to include to two additional production lines.