Gerresheimer, an innovative system and solution provider and a global partner for the pharma, biotech and cosmetics industries, received a prestigious Red Dot Design Concept award for its Gx Inbeneo autoinjector platform. The jury of competent experts recognized Gx Inbeneo due to its “high design quality.” Established more than 60 years ago, the Red Dot label has become a global hallmark of good design and innovation. Red Dot annually awards outstanding design in the three categories Product Design, Brands & Communication design and Design Concept. The 2024 Red Dot Design Concept award for the Gx Inbeneo recognizes the unique pre-pressurized concept and user-centric design of the autoinjector that enable patients to simply and safely self-administer highly viscous liquid biologic drugs.
“We are delighted to receive this award as recognition of Gerresheimer’s dedication to developing innovative solutions that meet the needs of our pharmaceutical customers and patients,” says Daniel Diezi, Global Senior Vice President Gerresheimer Advanced Technologies. ”With the Gx Inbeneo autoinjector, the Gerresheimer team, together with our partner Midas Pharma, came up with a unique solution that overcomes challenges of viscous biologics. We also created a platform concept for easy customization so that pharma companies can more quickly bring a combination product to market that supports quality of life for patients with chronic conditions.”
A unique concept enables smooth delivery of biologics
To respond to the challenge of delivering sensitive, viscous drug products, the Gx Inbeneo has a unique “pre-pressurized” design – it incorporates a pre-filled glass cartridge to retain the spring force. This innovation enables the use of springs strong enough to inject very high viscosities and up to 3 ml volume. The pre-pressurized design has the added advantage of reducing any gas bubble which might otherwise cause protein aggregation in sensitive biologics. The use of cartridges with baked-on siliconisation, which are also part of Gerresheimer’s broad product portfolio, further decreases the possibility of protein aggregation.
Another feature of the design is the separation of the needle from the primary packaging until use, thus eliminating the potential risk of viscous biologics clogging the needle during storage. The separated needle also has a double-ended design with a thicker end to pierce the cartridge septum and a thinner end to pierce the patient’s skin. This enables higher viscosities to be delivered in less time while mitigating patient discomfort.
Design features that support patient home-use
As well as the innovative solution to meet the challenges of biologics, the Gx Inbeneo also incorporates a number of enhanced patient usability and safety features. To help avoid needle stick injuries and alleviate patient anxiety, the needle of the autoinjector is concealed with a safety shield before and after use. Patients simply need to press the Gx Inbeneo against the skin and the drug is smoothly injected. The transparent top casing of the autoinjector, in addition to the central window, makes it easy for patients to track injection progress even if they have dexterity issues and need to hold the autoinjector in the fist. An audible click informs the patient when the injection is complete.
Development partnership contributes to success
The Gx Inbeneo autoinjector was developed by Gerresheimer in cooperation with Midas Pharma, based in Ingelheim, Germany. Such partnerships combine highly valuable industry expertise and enable Gerresheimer to innovate and deliver solutions, such as the Gx Inbeneo, that positively impact patients’ lives.