Shell claims GMP solvent first

London -- Shell Chemicals claims its Pernis, The Netherlands, site has become the first European operation to adopt Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) for the production and supply of GMP-compliant isopropyl alcohol (IPA) solvents.

New control and traceability measures throughout the supply chain ensure that the IPA-GMP grade meets the quality assurance requirements for its use as excipient in pharmaceuticals, food and cosmetics, Shell said 19 Sept.

According to a Shell spokeswoman, the IPA-GMP initiative involved changes to the tanks, loading and dispatch facilities at Pernis. The programme, she added, also involved dedicating road tankers to IPA-GMP to eliminate the potential for product mix-ups or contamination, as well as the need for cleaning between deliveries.

Shell is responding to current growth in interest in GMP-compliant material, said Sigrid Verstegen, regional IPA product manager, who added: “We expect to see GMP compliance eventually extended to chemicals in a wide range of pharmaceutical applications, as well in the production of food and cosmetics.”

GMP standards are already in place at Shell’s US and Canada plants for the manufacture of IPA solvent excipients -- non-active ingredients used in the manufacture of pharmaceutical products, such as medicinal tablets as well as disinfectants, sterilisers and skin creams.