The hand sanitizer pack has a 2.25 mil lamination with moisture and oxygen barrier properties designed to seal through contamination.

Everyday super heroes are continuing to leave the safety of their homes each day for the greater good in this time of pandemic. During this uncertain time, acts of kindness abound. One such example of generosity arose from an ingenious idea at HR Pharmaceuticals and impassioned support from C-P Flexible Packaging.

Colby Wiesman, president of HR Pharmaceuticals — a leading supplier of medical lubricants and ultrasound gels headquartered in York, Pennsylvania — is at the center of this idea. Witnessing the nationwide shortage of hand sanitizer, Wiesman sought out a way to help. Although HR Pharmaceuticals had never before offered or packaged hand sanitizer, he knew that the company’s ultrasound gels have a consistency similar to hand sanitizer gel.

On a Mission

Wiesman set out to produce hand sanitizer gel and provide it to various groups within the local community that were in desperate need of the product. HR Pharmaceuticals’ product development and sourcing teams came together to bring the idea to fruition. Although the alcohol needed to produce hand sanitizer was in short supply, the team managed pull together all of the raw materials needed to mass-produce the gel.

Next came the packaging. HR Pharmaceuticals needed a pack that could safely get the hand sanitizer into as many hands as possible — and as quickly as possible. Wiesman knew it would reach more people and be more widely distributed if packaged in single-use flexible packets rather than multi-use bottles. Single-use packets would also eliminate the potential for cross-contamination.

For this part of the equation, HR Pharmaceuticals contacted C-P Flexible Packaging — a multi-faceted developer and manufacturer of flexible packaging materials located near HR Pharmaceuticals. Wiesman explained his goals to help American citizens to Ray Clark, vice president of sales at C-P Flexible Packaging. Clark harnessed the full capabilities of the organization to support this important project.

Switching Gears

The healthcare supplier was able to create and deliver graphics for the new hand sanitizer packets within one day, and C-P Flexible Packaging managed to produce and deliver the first order of printed rollstock in record time. In fact, HR Pharmaceuticals was able to start packaging hand sanitizer gel in the finished packets just 10 days after Wiesman’s first conversation with C-P Flexible Packaging. The structure consists of a 2.25 mil lamination with moisture and oxygen barrier properties that is also designed to seal through contamination.

HR Pharmaceuticals has the capacity to produce up to 6 million packets of hand sanitizer per week. In addition to making the product available for sale through the national medical distribution network, it has been donated to local front-line workers like police departments, fire stations, EMT’s, prisons, courthouses, etc. that are now finding a need for this now-essential item. With limited availability in the marketplace, these donations help keep essential workers and the community at large safe in these uncertain times.

C-P Flexible Packaging was eager to assist HR Pharmaceuticals in this project. According to Mike Hoffman, CEO of C-P Flexible Packaging, “We were instantly inspired by Colby Wiesman’s call to action to provide Americans with a much needed product to help fight the dangerous coronavirus. A team led by Ray Clark implemented our fast track onboarding process utilizing our fully integrated capabilities to develop this package and commercialize it in record time. We thank Colby for the opportunity to support such a worthy initiative.”

Across the nation, as brave workers face the novel coronavirus head on each day as they work in medical facilities and other institutions, many of us watch from the sidelines wishing we could do more to help. Colby Wiesman of HR Pharmaceuticals who took that wish and found a way to support these front-liners and first responders in the mission against COVID-19.

“We were thankful that C-P Flexible Packaging bent over backwards to help us get the product into the literal hands of those who need it, with lead times that are unheard of in this industry,” said Wiesman. Seeing the internal staff and external partners work together on this has been one of the greatest joys of his career.