Comparison of automated and manual methods of syringe filling

A study to measure the time and cost associated with an automated and a manual method of syringe filling is reported. A stopwatch was used to measure the time needed by an experienced pharmacy technician to prepare batches of 200 syringes of each of seven drugs by a manual method and an automated method, the Multi-Ad Fluid Dispensing System. For each drug and method, time-and-motion data were collected during the preparation of four batches. The accuracy of each method was determined by dividing the actual by the expected number of syringes filled per batch. Material costs were calculated by summing the contract costs of the necessary equipment. The total cost of each method was determined by adding the labor and material costs. For all the drugs, the mean total time required to prepare one batch of syringes by the automated method was significantly less than that for the manual method. There was no significant difference in accuracy between methods for any of the drugs. The annual labor costs of the automated and manual methods were $4056 and $5761, respectively, and the annual material costs were $3364 and $2260, respectively. The total annual cost of the automated method was $7419, compared with $8021 for the manual method. The Multi-Ad system was significantly faster and somewhat less costly overall than a manual method for batch preparation of syringes of seven drugs.