How Valley Northern has become a trusted supplier

Finding a supplier that you can partner with in the pharmaceutical industry is a key consideration. There are strict regulations that businesses in the pharma market have to comply with, and the supplier must be able to supply all the relevant documentation required. With the help of pharmaceutical packaging supplier Valley Northern, Xeal Pharma Ltd provide their customers with confidence, knowing they are partnered with a company with very similar values to their own.

Birmingham-based, MHRA GMP certified manufacturer Xeal Pharma specialises in manufacturing unlicensed medicine – referred to as ‘Specials’. Xeal Pharma has a reputation in the industry for quality, reliability and efficiency. The company manufactures and supplies pharmaceutical Special products to healthcare professionals at affordable and competitive prices all across the UK.

When Xeal Pharma started the business in 2016, They needed a reliable, trustworthy supplier that he could have confidence in to supply all their pharmaceutical packaging needs.

“Valley Northern plays a major role in our service, they provide something that we can’t do without; we can’t sell our products without good packaging.” said Haidar, who is a director and Head of Quality.

“We are more than just a supplier to Xeal Pharma,” said Gillian, Sales Executive at Valley Northern. “Over the years we have provided solutions to their needs, maybe suggesting alternative options that we feel would be a better option of packaging – we are really an integral part of their supply chain.”

“As Head of Quality we need to audit our key suppliers, which is why we are here today,” explained Haidar. “I really like the branding, the facilities – it clearly shows you care for your staff, which you can also tell from the positive atmosphere here.”

“As a primary packaging supplier, we understand how important it is that pharmaceutical and industry standards are met and we are constantly improving our quality systems,” explained Adrian Pittock, Quality Assurance Officer at Valley Northern. “We have been exceeding ISO9001 & ISO14001 standards for the last 15 years, but we believe there is always room for improvement and welcome suggestions from our customers to help us improve.”

“We have worked with Xeal Pharma for a number of years and, in that time, we have developed a successful and trusting relationship,” said Gillian. “We believe in forming long-term relationships with all of our clients. Our customer service is very good so, whoever they speak to, they get that top level of care that they deserve.”

Haidar agreed: “We are very happy with your Customer Service. If we ever have any queries these are resolved in very timely and efficient manner with a really good attitude. They always keep you in the loop; the level of communication is very good. It’s been really nice to be able to put faces to names today.”

Haidar continued: “Valley Northern have very similar values to our company, we have similar things we track by, like how fast we deal with queries and get back to customers. We are very strong in Customer Service. That’s why we are growing like we are; it is from our Customers’ recommendation of our service to others. It gives us assurance to know that we have a supplier that we can rely on.”

To find out more about Xeal Pharma, visit http://xealpharma.co.uk/

To find out more about Valley Northern, visit www.valleynorthern.com.

How Valley Northern supplies environmentally responsible products

Legislative focus on reducing both consumer and commercial use of plastic continues to diminish the use of single-use plastic carrier bags. Finding a packaging supplier offering a quality range of environmentally-conscious consumable products is now paramount. With the help of Environmental Policy ISO 14001-accredited packaging supplier Valley Northern, businesses can pack their products responsibly and demonstrate compliance with new regulations on plastic.

A Northamptonshire-based Dental Distributor specialising in designing and dispensing Oral Health Education campaigns in the UK has used Valley Northern as their sustainable packaging supplier for the last 18 months.

The company, which makes and distributes targeted tooth brushing packs to schools in deprived areas of the UK with dental health issues, approached Valley Northern when they sighted a need to source eco-friendly packaging.

The company has a proven record of releasing pressure on the NHS and improving dental hygiene within the areas in which it operates. The requirement for environmentally-friendly packaging came from a bid to move away from using plastics and to implement reusable materials instead.

An environmentally-conscious bag was required which would be strong enough to hold heavy toothpaste and toothbrushes, as well as to withstand being packaged and sent to schools. The bags would also need to be printed on with the individual branding and desired messaging of the hospitals local to the destination schools. Paper prescription bags seemed to be the most appropriate solution, in terms of durability, sustainability and obtaining a crisp, professional print finish.

“We have done extensive research into plastic alternatives for our popular bag ranges and have discovered a great many advantages to the different sustainable bagging options available,” said Adrian Pittock, Quality Assurance Officer at Valley Northern. “The ability to custom print these bags means that manufacturers can take a more bespoke approach to their sustainable packaging.”

“We have supplied The Honest Tooth with their bespoke printed bags for some time now and find it truly satisfying to be able to help in a small way towards their campaigns,” Gemma, Sales Executive at Valley Northern, explained. “We are impressed with their quirky, fun designs – which really appeals to their target market of young schoolchildren.”

Further to simply supplying the bags, Valley Northern have been working with the Buyer within the Dental Distributor company to understand more about their projects. After gaining useful insights into the business’ requirements, we worked together to look at alternative options for some smaller campaigns, where the print runs are very small as they are tailored for a particular target audience.

The need for flexibility is paramount to being able to obtain these smaller print runs. Valley Northern explored the relevant eco-friendly bag options available. These included both compostable and biodegradable corn starch alternatives; which have flexible print run quantities and do not have an adverse effect on the environment as the production cycle consumes so little energy.

Valley Northern is committed to providing its customers with quality, cost effective sustainable packaging that can be personalised just as effectively as plastic. It will not only call for a great deal of collaboration to find your perfect sustainable solution, but innovation as well.

Browse our sustainable packaging range here.

Overcoming simple challenges for the benefit of all

A hospital in the heart of Wales was running a campaign to encourage patients to bring unwanted medicines to their pharmacy safely so as to avoid putting others at risk.

The hazard is that medicines are stockpiled at home increasing the risk of wrong medication being taken, out of date medicines being used with consequential dangers, or other children or vulnerable adults taking them.

Furthermore, they had a language barrier to overcome with 53% of people in Wales speaking Welsh daily!

After spending some time with Valley northern, our team came up with a plan to do all of this;

We suggested a bag printed up with clear instructions of what to do, using Welsh AND English language. Simple, English on one side and Welsh on the other!

And to avoid the risk of medicines getting lost, we suggested switching to a re-sealable bag – so that there are no dropouts! We also added in a bottom gusset to make life hassle free

The result? - Happy customers and safer happy patients!

We love thinking up solutions, do you have a fresh challenge for us?

We're only a phone call away – 01785 250123.

Overcoming simple challenges for the benefit of all

Bespoke Label Designs

Last year a pharmacist approached us asking if we did labels for flu vaccinations, and we were running against the clock. To help our customer meet their requirements we created a bespoke label for them, but it got us to thinking that this could be a useful product for many more customers.

Our product development team set to work designing the idea and making it a reality. By the time the flu vaccination season was in full swing, we had the new labels in stock and available for anyone to order with no minimum order quantities.

This year we are fully prepared in advance, with ample stocks ready for you.

Have you had an idea that would make your life easier? Not seen something on the market but wish it was readily available? Discovered that small things make big differences?

With Valley Northern you can voice your ideas, make requests and reap the benefits by making it happen.

Simply let us know your ideas – we will work on making them realities.

Your creativity, our innovation, ingenuity realised

A Solutions Provider and a Problem Solver...That's Valley Northern!

When the main purchasing manager from a well known hospital near the centre of London came to us asking for ideas, Valley Northern rose to the challenge once again!

The hospital was running a clinical trial for a new drug, and was having difficulties in dispensing the pre-filled syringes to the correct departments. Therefore, they needed us to create a cardboard carton dispenser to ease the situation.

After the hospital had provided a rough sketch of what they wanted, and the brand that they wanted printing on the dispenser, Valley Northern set to and got a proper scale drawing produced to visualise the product accurately.

It was identified that not only did the hospital staff need a dispenser but they also needed to see the printed batch number on the back of the cartons which go in the dispenser.

Taking all this into account, the bespoke team at Valley Northern produced a sample for the customer. This then brought to light that one small amendment needed to be made to the carton. Something was needed to go into the base of the dispenser to enable the syringe cartons to slide out easily. Being a solutions-driven team, we came up with the idea of inserting a piece of polystyrene into the base of the dispenser. Another challenge met.

Within just 2 weeks, Valley Northern had produced a final proof and a physical sample of the carton had been manufactured and sent to the hospital.

Just 2 months later, we were proud to have developed, produced and delivered an excellent solution to the requirements of this valued customer. An entirely bespoke and exclusive carton dispenser had been provided, but most of all, another customers life became more hassle-free as a result of our helpful team here at Valley Northern.

We look forward to hearing from you with how we can provide you with the Valley Northern bespoke solutions service!

Hospital makes strategic move forward to improve its image.

A hospital decided to make a strategic move forward to save their reputation and ensure that bad publicity didn’t re-occur. They ordered the Unopac Bottles from Valley Northern. These tried and tested bottles are guaranteed 100% contamination free as they come with the caps already on, and are capped within 90 seconds of being made.

A well known hospital in North London was publicised in the local press for having a creeping insect inside their tablet bottles after a customer received their tablets with an insect included!

The hospital had always traditionally used uncapped bottles and separate caps, which they stored with the tops of the boxes open in a store room, so anything could get in. As a result of the above issue, they contacted Valley Northern who immediately provided the solution.

The hospital doesn’t have any open bottles in their store room anymore, and they don’t have to go searching for the separate caps. The hospital image has been improved as customers recognised the hospital as being prepared to make drastic improvements; not only this, the hospital now has total peace of mind knowing that they are using a safe, guaranteed dispensing solution. Totally hassle free!

Frustration eliminated and costs reduced as solution is found to packing pre-filled syringes.

So many times we go on doing the same tasks thinking that there is no better method to how I’m doing them now. Yet, one day a busy pharmacist took a few minutes to call Valley Northern to ask if there was any possibility of helping him sort the issue with packing down Dalteparin and Clexane pre-filled syringes. At the time they were using two cartons together or having to fold ends and use sticky tape, both of which were very costly and time consuming.

Valley Northern came up with a new special size of Tablet Carton called CTNXL and this was specifically designed to fit these products in. Now hundreds of other customers have benefited as they were experiencing the same issue. Each of these pharmacists have had their ‘carton frustration’ eliminated, and are now experiencing a reduction in costs for dispensing these products. Simply hassle free!

Case Studies