SCHOTT Pharma expands ready-to-use portfolio with sterile 1.5 ml cartridge

Wednesday, May 14, 2025, Mainz, Germany

  • The 1.5 ml cartridge is the smallest format in SCHOTT Pharma’s sterile cartriQ® portfolio, streamlining the pharmaceutical filling process for a wide range of drugs
  • It is optimized for the innovative diamond-shaped cartriQ® nest design, enhancing efficiency and sustainability in fill-and-finish operations
  • The sterile 1.5 ml cartridge, in combination with pen or autoinjector systems, supports treatments for patients at home
SCHOTT Pharma, a pioneer in drug containment solutions and delivery systems, is proud to introduce a new small-volume ready-to-use (RTU) cartridge for human use to the market. The 1.5 ml sterile cartridge represents a significant expansion of SCHOTT Pharma’s cartriQ® portfolio and offers the smallest sterile format to date, which is critical for the stable storage of insulin, GLP-1 drugs, or hormone therapies. The portfolio expansion is in line with SCHOTT Pharma's strategic goal to provide its customers with high-value solutions, further solidifying the company’s leading position. The new 1.5 ml format is ISO-compliant and has been developed with a state-of-the-art siliconization process as well as the recently introduced diamond-shaped nest design for optimal output, enabling pharmaceutical companies to increase production efficiency, reduce total cost of ownership and accelerate time-to-market for medications.
Gloved hands hold a cartridge and a cartridge holder.
In line with its strategy to increase high-value solutions, SCHOTT Pharma expands its sterile cartridge portfolio with a new 1.5 ml format. Image: SCHOTT Pharma/Oana Szekely

Transforming pharmaceutical manufacturing

The pharmaceutical industry is continuously evaluating manufacturing processes to achieve higher drug yields using less resources. This has led to a fundamental rethinking of pharmaceutical manufacturing and a shift towards utilizing RTU drug containment and delivery systems, which enhance process flexibility and efficiency while maintaining high-quality standards.

Andreas Reisse, CEO of SCHOTT Pharma, states: “For our RTU products, we handle washing, siliconization, crimping, and sterilization processes from pharmaceutical manufacturers. This enables them to increase efficiency, reduce total cost of ownership, and accelerate time-to-market for their medications. Our approach creates high-value solutions for our customers and supports our strategy to increase revenue from these offerings.”

SCHOTT Pharma’s standardized nest and tub, along with its pre-washed, and pre-sterilized RTU drug containment and delivery portfolio, provide easy and flexible production scale-up for pharmaceutical manufacturers and Contract Development and Manufacturing Organizations (CDMOs). The new 1.5 ml sterile cartridge format, developed alongside the optimized diamond-shaped nest, enhances efficiency of pharmaceutical filling processes by up to 67% and reduces CO2 emissions by nearly 25% in the supply chain.

Facilitating homecare

SCHOTT Pharma is working closely with leading device manufacturers such as Ypsomed to simplify the self-administration of medications at home, for example for chronic diseases such as diabetes, obesity, or growth hormone deficiency. This trend not only improves the lives of patients but also eases the burden on the healthcare system. The new 1.5 ml sterile cartridge is compatible with a broad range of pen injectors, for example Ypsomed's UnoPen®, providing pharmaceutical companies with a pre-tested system, including device and container.

Innovation and collaboration with trusted partners are key strategic pillars for SCHOTT Pharma, driving progress in pharmaceutical manufacturing while creating efficient, sustainable, and patient-friendly solutions.

More information on RTU cartridges from SCHOTT Pharma: https://www.schott-pharma.com/en/products/pharmaceutical-cartridges/cartriq
Cartridge nest in the new format.

The new 1.5 ml sterile cartridge format, developed alongside the optimized diamond-shaped nest, enhances pharmaceutical filling processes and reduces CO2 emissions in the supply chain. Image: SCHOTT Pharma/Oana Szekely

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About SCHOTT Pharma

Human health matters. That is why SCHOTT Pharma designs solutions grounded in science to ensure that medications are safe and easy to use for people around the world. Every minute, more than 25,000 people receive an injection packed in a SCHOTT Pharma product. The portfolio comprises drug containment solutions and delivery systems for injectable drugs ranging from prefillable glass and polymer syringes to cartridges, vials, and ampoules. Every day, a team of around 4,700 people from over 60 nations works at SCHOTT Pharma to contribute to global healthcare. The company is represented in all main pharmaceutical hubs with 17 manufacturing sites in Europe, North and South America, and Asia. With over 1,000 patents and technologies developed in-house and a state-of-the-art R&D center in Switzerland, the company is focused on developing innovations for the future. SCHOTT Pharma AG & Co. KGaA is headquartered in Mainz, Germany and listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange as part of the SDAX. It is majority owned by SCHOTT AG, which is owned by the Carl Zeiss Foundation. In light of this spirit, SCHOTT Pharma is committed to sustainable development for society and the environment. Currently, SCHOTT Pharma has over 1,800 customers including the top 30 leading pharma manufacturers for injectable drugs and generated revenue of EUR 957 million in the fiscal year 2024. Further information at www.schott-pharma.com

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Lea Kaiser

PR & Communications Manager