Abstract background for ophthalmic blister packaging case study

Custom Blister Packaging for Ophthalmic Lenses and Injectors

Millennium Biomedical Inc.

Millennium Biomedical is an ophthalmic/medical device company in the U.S. that makes lenses and injectors. They have a sister company in Boston called AST and both companies are owned by a parent company in Taiwan called Icares Medica.

Situation

Millennium Biomedical needed custom blister packaging to protect and present its cataract lenses and injectors. The company ships products to customers overseas, so packaging performance was critical - not only for product protection, but also for presentation, handling, and reliability in a regulated medical environment.

The customer required a tailor-made blister design specific to their optical components and injector configurations, including dedicated compartments. Over time, their packaging portfolio had expanded to multiple blister pack models, introducing complexity in ordering, inventory, and operations. They needed a partner who could provide custom design, support standardization, and alignment with the internal QA approval process and planning team.

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Solution

Ironwood Packaging partnered closely with Millennium Biomedical to develop custom blister packs precisely engineered for their lens and injector system. Key elements of Ironwood’s solution included:

  • Designing a custom, compartmentalized blister tailored to the customer’s injector and lens combination, rather than a generic off-the-shelf approach.
  • Utilizing an appropriate PET material and forming process to deliver a consistent, high-quality, medical-grade blister suitable for international shipments.
  • Providing a single, optimized model that enabled the customer to consolidate from multiple blister types down to one primary design, simplifying procurement and production.
  • Supporting the customer’s internal QA department and planning team by supplying the blister configuration needed for their approval and validation workflow.

Ironwood’s responsiveness and willingness to tailor the packaging to the customer’s specific device configuration helped position them as a trusted, go-to supplier for custom medical blister solutions.

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Results

With Ironwood’s custom blister packaging in place, the customer realized several important benefits:

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A tailor-made blister pack that fits their lens and injector precisely, supporting clean presentation and efficient downstream handling.
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Reliable sealing and protection for products shipped overseas, with no reported damage issues after implementation.
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Streamlined packaging portfolio, moving from multiple blister types to one primary blister design, contributing to operational simplicity.
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Continued confidence in Ironwood as a responsive partner that can support future custom packaging needs for related entities within their corporate family, including a sister company that also produce lenses and injectors.

Millennium Biomedical continues to rely on Ironwood Packaging as a reliable, customer-focused supplier in the medical device sector.

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