EASYSEAL®
Reliable Softgel Seams• Significant reduction of leakers• Higher machine speeds• Reduced production costs

EASYSEAL
The easy solution
to get rid of leakers®

Optimize your entire soft capsule production just by changing one parameter –the gelatin. By using GELITA’s new solution EASYSEAL®, you can minimize issues
with leaking softgels. EASYSEAL® is an innovative pharmaceutical grade
gelatin appropriate for all products that require special care or even special
equipment (double step die toolings) or only work at lower machine speeds.
Our new solution leads to a significant reduction of leakers and allows theenhancement of product quality while reducing production time and costs.

Leaking softgels –a multifactorial problem
During the encapsulation process and following drying step inthe production of soft capsules, not fully sealed capsules canappear, causing so called “leakers”. The main cause of this effectcan be difficult to identify because many different parameters
can influence the seam quality during the encapsulation process.
To reduce the scrap rate caused by weak orincomplete seams, many manufacturers
restrict their machine speeds which leads
to poor equipment effectiveness.

Worst case: leakers ruin the batch

Just exchange
the gelatin
GELITA has extensively investigated the issue and found that thechoice of gelatin has a significant influence on the occurrence ofleakers. Based on extensive testing, we have developed a new,innovative gelatin grade that enables the production of leakerfree capsules even at high machine speeds. With EASYSEAL®, weoffer a highly processable gelatin that optimizes
seam forming and enhances seam thickness
and stability in soft capsule systems (shelland fill). As a result, the capsules are moreresistant against physical stress.
The easy solution: EASYSEAL® from GELITA

Influencing factors and negative effects of leakers

Influencing factors

Negative effects•	Fill•	Rotary die tool•	Machine speed• Temperature settings•	Gelatin•	Colors in the shell,
especially pigments•	Decreased yield•	Decreased productivity•	Limited productivity optimization•	Contamination of surrounding capsules• Limitation of shell coloration•	Negative effect on coating•	Negative effect on capsule taste•	Changed API dose and/or irritationof oral mucosa•	Waste of expensive fills

Figure 2: Burst-Strength of capsules withstandard gelatin versus EASYSEAL®
60

Burst-Strength [kg]50Machine Speed:
Slow40

Fast3020
100

Optimize seam thickness –as well as machine speeds
It is well known that faster machine speeds lead to thinnercapsule seams which are less robust. With EASYSEAL®, theseam thickness can be significantly enhanced – typicallyabove 50 % for the bovine gelatin and above 40 % for theporcine version – by using default settings on a standard
softgel machine. The seams show extremely homogeneous
shape (figure 1) and are nearly as thick as the capsule walls.
This allows the production of high-quality, leaker-free capsules,
with higher Burst-Strength (figure 2), produced with higher
machine speeds with only minor changes of process settings
and without changing the machine design (figure 3). With
EASYSEAL®, the process is more robust and various processoptimizations and cost reduction are possible.

StandardEASYSEAL®

StandardBovine

EASYSEAL®

PorcineFigure 3: EASYSEAL® – thick and robustcapsule seams
Thickness of Trailing Seams
Standard Gelatin 160 Bloom; 2.7 rpm; 820 µm Ribbon

100 %EASYSEAL®, unchanged settings

142 %EASYSEAL , increased speed (+20 %); adjusted ribbon®

152 %EASYSEAL®, increased speed (+30 %); reduced ribbon (–15 %)100 %Figure 1: Cross-section of a soft capsule with EASYSEAL® (microscope image)2 mmFigure 6: Constantly high seam thickness overa wide temperature range on the wedge.

EASYSEAL® –Reduced rate of leakers

300Trailing Seam Thickness [μm]Ensures easier handling, lessstart-up time and higher
tolerance in case of process
variations.

EASYSEAL®

250

Standard Gelatin
160 Bloom

200150100500The reference product was produced with a standard 175 Bloom
gelatin and a soy lecithin fill. The capsules were dried with continuous tumble drying until the desired hardness was achieved.
The reference product was found to have leaking capsules in all
tumblers, the batch was considered a failure. Trials were thenperformed with the EASYSEAL® gelatin, while keeping all otherencapsulation parameters the same. One trial resulted in 8 outof 9 tumblers possessing the absence of leaking capsules, while
a second trial resulted in 7 out of 10 tumblers possessing
the absence of leaking capsules (figure 4). This significantly
lowered production costs, as those tumblers without leakers
don’t need to be sorted.
Figure 4: Passing tumblers without Leakers
Reference (Std. Gel. 175 Bloom)

35

37

39

41

Temperatureindependency
With EASYSEAL® the seam formation capability is much lessdependent on the wedge temperature than with standard
gelatin (figure 6). This means that variations in the gelmass cooking or aging times have much smaller impact
on the encapsulation process while process robustness
is significantly increased.

EASYSEAL® allows product-, process- and costoptimization, according to your specific process
requirement and fill material:

0%
EASYSEAL®, trial 1

89%
EASYSEAL , trial 2®

70 %FasterDrying
Because of new product performance, less water is required in
the gelmass (figure 5) and evaporation of water is improved.
Both effects result in only 18 hours of drying time, compared
to 32 hours drying time of Standard product  about 50 %faster drying.

•	Higher Seam Thickness  reduction of leakers
and enables encapsulation of ingredients thatwould otherwise not be able to be processed(e.g. emulsions)•	Reduced leaker  higher yield of products
in spec, less cross-contamination of capsulebatches and less fill wasted•	Reduced ribbon thickness, higher machine
speed and reduced drying time  same quantityand quality of capsules (compared with StandardGelatin) at reduced costs

Figure 5: Gelmass compositions		

43

Wedge-Temperature [°C]

REFERENCE

EASYSEAL®

Gelatin

4452

Glycerol2220

Water3428

Clean and fast production of soft capsulesExemplary results from pilot trials with various formulations and conditions on three different industrial scale equipments

Flyer_EASYSEAL®_en (6p)_09-2023_srg

One solution.
Many issues resolved.
Benefits ofEASYSEAL®
•	Reduced rate of leaking soft capsules at standardmachine speed•	Higher capsule output in same production time•	No need to sort out leaking capsules or to clean
the capsule batch•	More robust production due to higher tolerance
for process parameters•	Lower maintenance by staff during production•	Cost-saving due to less leakers(especially for expensive APIs/fills)•	Allows products that can’t be produced efficiently
today due to leakers – e.g. Softgels with Lecithin

Productcharacterization

PATENT PENDING
BLOOM [g]EASYSEAL® gelatin types, pharmaceutical grade• P roduced in accordance with FDA
regulations, HACCP, ISO9001:2015
and FSSC22000• Product is suitable for productsfor Health & Nutrition and pharmaceutical applications – Rx as wellas Over-The-Counter (OTC).
•C hina Drug Master File (CDMF)
registration available forselected types.

RAW MATERIALNAME OF GELATINEBLOOM [g]VISCOSITY 6.67 %/60 °C [mPas]

Bovine BoneEASYSEAL®
220 Bloom Limed Bovine Bone Gelatin

176 – 264

1.7 – 2.5

EASYSEAL®
200 Bloom Limed Bovine Bone Gelatin

160 – 240

1.7 – 2.5

EASYSEAL®
200 Bloom Porcine Skin Gelatin

160 – 240

1.5 – 2.3

Porcine Skin

bit.ly/44HcIb9

GELITA excludes any warranty and/or liability for any and all claims arising from or in relation with statements made regarding its ingredients, including but not limited to claims based on allegedly
misleading advertising and/or a violation of applicable local statutes and regulations. The positioning as well as the packaging, labelling and advertising of the client’s products with GELITA’singredients falls solely within the responsibility of the client, who must rely solely on the scientific studies to create their claims. The statements in this document have not been evaluated by theFood and Drug Administration nor by any local regulatory bodies, and the product(s) discussed herein is (are) not intendedto diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. The information contained herein is for business and informational purposes
only. Although the information provided is, to the best of our knowledge, truthful and accurate, GELITA does not guarantee
its accuracy. Companies desiring to incorporate any structure/ function claim in product labeling or advertising must consult
with appropriate legal counsel to ensure any such claim is lawful and substantiated for the specific product and the desiredmarket. GELITA assumes no responsibility for buyer’s product claims.

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