Weighing solutions
Weighing solutions for pharma, cosmetics and detergents: what applies to each – and what they share
The question "which weighing solution do we need?" starts with another: "what do we actually have to prove about raw material weighing?" The answer differs by industry in formal depth, but hardly in substance. This page sets out the obligations for three industries and then shows how d-dispensing covers them with one product.
Part 1 · Orientation by industry
Pharmaceuticals: dispensing under EU GMP
Framework: EU GMP Guide Part I (Chapter 4 Documentation, Chapter 5 Production), Annex 11 for computerised systems, Annex 15 for qualification; 21 CFR Part 11 for export to the US.
What it means for dispensing: dispensing only by designated persons under a written procedure; each quantity checked and the check recorded; batch record with quantity, container/lot ID, time and person per raw material; electronic records with audit trail; system qualified on a risk basis. Details and a 12-point checklist: GMP weighing and dispensing software.
Typical practice: tight tolerances on the API, second-person or validated automatic check, proof of charging into the process vessel.
Cosmetics: dispensing under ISO 22716
Framework: the EU Cosmetics Regulation requires manufacture in line with good manufacturing practice; ISO 22716 is the harmonised standard for it. Plus CLP labelling and workplace rules for raw materials at the bench.
What it means for dispensing: documented manufacturing instructions, production records with raw material batches, traceability from finished product to raw material and back; control that the right raw materials were used in the right quantity. Formal depth is lower than in pharma – an Annex 11-style audit trail is not prescribed, but customer audits (private label, large buyers) increasingly expect it.
Typical practice: recipes with 20+ positions, many tiny quantities (fragrances, colourants, preservatives), high mix-up risk between similar raw materials, several batches from one order.
Detergents and cleaning products: hazardous substances and large batches
Framework: Detergents Regulation (product labelling), CLP Regulation for classification and labelling of raw materials, workplace hazardous-substance rules; quality management usually to ISO 9001, plus customer audit requirements for private label.
What it means for dispensing: employees must know the hazards of the substances they handle – including quantities decanted in-house; raw material batch traceability; correct stock. Formal GMP obligations are absent, but the operational risks (acids, alkalis, enzymes, surfactants) are higher.
Typical practice: large batches dosed in parts, multi-batch orders, safety data sheets in a binder rather than at the bench.
What all three share
| Requirement | Pharma | Cosmetics | Detergents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Right material (container/lot checked) | Mandatory | Mandatory (traceability) | Expected (traceability, stock) |
| Right quantity (tolerance enforced) | Mandatory | Mandatory (manufacturing instruction) | Quality/cost |
| Right batch (multi-batch orders) | Mandatory | Mandatory | Expected |
| Evidence per weighing (who, when, what, how much) | Mandatory, with audit trail | Mandatory, records | Expected, records |
| Hazard information at the bench | Mandatory | Mandatory | Mandatory – and in practice the most relevant |
| Correct stock in the ERP | Mandatory | Expected | Expected |
Principle level; does not replace regulatory advice.
Part 2 · One weighing solution for all three
One weighing solution: d-dispensing
d-dispensing is a weighing solution for exactly the step all three industries share: weighing raw materials from containers into a batch against a bill of materials, and proving it – a dispensing system, not a recipe management tool (see recipe weighing software). There are no industry editions – the differences lie in BOMs, material master and GHS data from your ERP.
| Requirement | How d-dispensing meets it |
|---|---|
| Right material | Container scan against the BOM position before weighing; refusal logged |
| Right quantity | Server-side tolerance check: 104 % of remaining per weighing, 98–102 % position closure, warnings at 50 %/95 %; cumulative for partial quantities |
| Right batch | Progress per batch for multi-batch orders |
| Evidence | Hash-chained audit trail with export; label with record ID; proof of charging |
| Hazard information | GHS pictograms and signal word next to the live weight while pouring |
| Stock | Stock movement in ERP and WMS in one transaction (myfactory with xstorage, or weclapp, today) |
| Operation | Weighing in progress continues without network; idempotent re-booking; one server per plant, one agent per scale |
| Hardware | Serial scales from Mettler Toledo, Sartorius, RHEWA and more, further manufacturers easy to add; Zebra/ZPL labelling |
For cosmetics and detergent plants without their own IT department: one site server and one station agent are enough to start; further benches join as further agents. Operation in the browser. Manual, documented installation today; signed Windows installer on the roadmap. How this compares with other kinds of weighing scale software is mapped on the overview page.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Next step
Where to read next
- Owners / management: A demo on your own recipes; ten-question list in the FAQ.
- Production: Try the live terminal.
- QA: Dispensing under GMP – requirements and 12-point checklist.