Product & Materials R&D Scale-up White Paper

Every product on the market has made the R&D journey from concept to commercialization. For each product that makes it, there are many that fall through the net during the process.

One of the key stumbling blocks is the move from feasibility study to sustainable production via a demonstration (or pilot) plant. Scale-up requires an extremely wide range of skills: scientists, engineers, regulatory and business managers need to work together to develop and deliver a plan that meets technical and commercial targets.

Scale-up activities usually become relevant once the concept has been proven at the lab scale. The required production scale and cost are based on the target market size and desired share. Depending on the industry, the production throughput can vary from a few kilograms to thousands of tons per day with the latter demanding considerable investment. Scale-up studies mitigate the risks involved by considering all the aspects of a commercial process, forecasting potential pitfalls and making sure that overall full-scale production is profitable.

The starting point is a process that delivers technically, proven at the small-scale. It can be anything from a 10cm x 10cm construction panel with low conductivity, low weight and high mechanical strength, to a new material for controlled drug release made in tens of grams batches.

This white paper gives an overview of the scale up process, highlighting possible drawbacks and best practice.