Benson Group People

October 2009

Tracy Keen - QA Manager, Medica Packaging

Tracy is the pharmaceutical lead auditor at Medica Packaging, Crewe, and has been working at the company for nearly seven years. Tracy's familiarity with quality management systems began in the ceramics industry, and since moving into the packaging arena she has been involved with QMS on the pharmaceutical side of the business.

The QA Department at Medica perform a release process which incorporates a review of all the checks within the manufacturing process to ensure the company's continued compliance, whilst at the same time recording and monitoring any issues identified for further improvements.

Tracy and her team are responsible for the continued compliance of Medica's QMS system which includes the standards required for the printing and converting of cartons, printing and finishing of patient information leaflets, and, most recently, for label manufacturing.

One recent major project in the department involved changing the scope of Medica's supply to be registered for label manufacturing. The target for the department in the forthcoming year is 98% compliance against all orders delivered across the three product streams of cartons, leaflets and labels.

The results of the company's QMS processes are representative of the commitment to the quality system by all Medica departmental teams.

Tracy, with the support of new Medica General Manager Keith Greasley, has also instigated the reintroduction of the Operational Excellence experience at the company. This utilises lean tools to identify root causes of production issues.

The department is also trialling a different approach to its Standard Operating Procedures. This utilises flow charts and images, working on the theory that a picture is worth a thousand words!