Power outages are part of everyday life in Germany - with serious consequences for the economy. According to a survey by the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce, 42% of the 1,000 companies surveyed from various sectors and regions experienced power outages of up to three minutes in 2023. The consequences are sometimes serious - but not for the German pharmaceutical company Vetter. The company, which has production sites in Germany, Austria and the USA, does not manufacture any medicines itself. Instead, it specializes in filling them aseptically, for example in syringes, cartridges or vials. To ensure that this is completely aseptic, Vetter has been safeguarding its production processes with uninterruptible power supply systems - Kinetic PowerPacks for short - for almost 20 years.
"A power failure would mean that we would have to dispose of entire batches of medication," says Kai Schumacher. He is Head of Electrical Engineering at pharmaceutical service provider Vetter and, together with his team, ensures that the electricity always flows at Vetter. And always really means 100 percent. "The smallest outages would have the biggest impact," he explains.
This is because the medicines must be filled in a completely sterile atmosphere. This is required by both the regulatory authorities and Vetter's customers: the largest pharmaceutical manufacturers in the world. No microorganisms or impurities are allowed to get into the active ingredients, as this would compromise their effectiveness and therefore patient safety.
The Vetter production employees - all wearing overalls, a cap over their hair and a face mask and gloves - therefore fill the medicines in a so-called clean room. The air here is cool and clean, almost sterile smelling. A quiet, constant humming of the filter systems can be heard. The lighting is bright, but not dazzling, and the floor is spotless.