Hanson Research is a company that has developed along with the pharmaceutical industry. “Our product line has evolved over the years to proactively address changes in regulatory requirements, new test methods for pharmaceutical formulations and international harmonization for the quality assurance of pharmaceuticals,” said Hanson Research Chairman and CEO Royal Hanson.

Hanson Research was founded in 1951 by Mr. Hanson’s father. The California-based company employs 44 people. It manufactures dissolution testing instruments, primarily for pharmaceutical customers, who comprise 95% of the company’s US sales, according to Mr. Hanson. Dissolution testers account for more than half of all products sold. The firm also offers diffusion-cell test systems and the Flodex instrument for powder flowability testing. The company’s most popular products, according to Mr. Hanson, are the manual Vision G2 Classic 6 and automated Elite 8 dissolution testers and the AutoPlus autosampling system. New versions of each product were introduced in 2012. The Vision G2 product line was designed to work with semi-solid formulations in anticipation of the US Pharmacopeia’s (USP) Chapter <1724> on performance testing for semi-solid drug products, which is currently undergoing revision.

Hanson Research sells its products in 75 countries. “We intentionally focused our efforts to go out into the world, into developing markets, to meet scientists and discuss with regulatory agencies their in-country requirements for improving the quality of medicine and distribution within their country,” explained Mr. Hanson. “We have over 50 trained and authorized international distributors, and over 75% of our business is now export.”

Mr. Hanson told IBO that Hanson Research focuses on simplicity of product operation to differentiate itself. “Our design philosophy is plug and play,” he said. “We aim to reduce the time it takes an analyst to set up and program an instrument.” The instruments are also designed to be intuitive, according to Mr. Hanson. “We provide an easy-to-read color touch screen with simple menus to follow when [inputting protocols] and confirming required steps and processes the instrument will perform when a dissolution test is running. The user is prompted with program choices that are typically confirmed with one easy click.”

Hanson Research intends to utilize its R&D investment, which it has doubled in the last three years, to examine new software opportunities, according to Mr. Hanson. “Our R&D program is very important to us, and I think that within the realm of software, we’re looking at programming opportunities that might make it easier for an analyst to manage their dissolution test data,” he said. The company is also working to develop instrumentation for more novel means of drug delivery, such as drug implants, in anticipation of future USP chapters. “There are many [drug delivery vehicles] that are not yet USP approved,” explained Mr. Hanson. “Researchers are maybe developing in-house methods, maybe looking to partner with a company like Hanson, who might commercialize an apparatus so it might become accepted industry wide.”