Saxsons Group

Knowledge Hub · FLEX™ Dispensing Hot Cell

What the FLEX does — without the GMP textbook.

A cyclotron site has to deliver patient-ready radiopharmaceutical doses that pass pharmaceutical inspection. That responsibility sits on a stack of European, global and Indian rulebooks. This page explains, in plain language, what each rule asks for — and how the FLEX answers it. The source link under each card takes you to the underlying standard if you want to go deep.

Where the FLEX sits

From the cyclotron to the patient — four steps

Step 1

Cyclotron

Particle accelerator makes the F-18 (and Lu-177)

Step 2

Hot lab

Chemistry inside a shielded cell turns it into a drug

Step 3

FLEX

Each patient dose is drawn here, in the cleanest workspace class

Step 4

Patient

Syringe leaves the cell, scanned/injected within hours

Why this matters

Six things the FLEX delivers, explained simply

Built for cyclotron sites

Designed for the PET radiopharmacy, not adapted to it

Europe's pharmaceutical rulebook has a dedicated chapter for places that make PET tracers from a cyclotron. The FLEX is engineered for that exact workflow — it doesn't try to be a generic isolator.

Based on: EU GMP Annex 3 — Manufacture of Radiopharmaceuticals

Read source ↗

Highest pharma cleanroom class

Patient doses are filled inside the cleanest workspace pharma defines

When the new sterile-medicines rulebook took effect in August 2023, it set "Grade A" — the strictest cleanroom class — as the expected baseline for filling sterile injections. The space inside the FLEX is Grade A by design.

Pharma cleanroom classes

A

cleanest

B

C

D

least

FLEX = Grade A inside the isolator.

Based on: EU GMP Annex 1 — Manufacture of Sterile Medicinal Products (revised 2022, effective 2023-08-25)

Read source ↗

Every dispense recorded

A touch-screen log auditors can review

Each dose drawn is recorded on the cell's touch-screen — who, what, when. Modern pharma regulations expect that kind of digital paper trail; the FLEX is built to fit a LIMS-style data integrity workflow.

Based on: EU GMP Annex 11 — Computerised Systems

Read source ↗

Configured for the Indian market

100 mm of lead — the thickness Indian cyclotron sites specify

The standard FLEX ships with 75 mm of lead — Indian cyclotron radiopharmacies typically want more. Saxsons supplies the FLEX at 100 mm of lead on all sides and handles the AERB import licence end-to-end.

Based on: AERB — Regulatory Requirements & Guidelines for Medical Cyclotron Facility (2017)

Read source ↗

Globally recognised framework

The same rulebook the WHO and IAEA publish for the world

Beyond Europe, the World Health Organization and the IAEA jointly publish the global GMP standard for radiopharmaceuticals. The FLEX is built against this same global frame — so a site that wants to export PET products, run multi-national trials or align with WHO sits on solid ground.

Based on: WHO TRS 1025 Annex 2 — Joint IAEA/WHO GMP for Radiopharmaceutical Products (2020)

Read source ↗

One cell, two isotopes

PET tracers today, Lu-177 therapy when you scale

F-18 (FDG, NaF, F-DOPA, PSMA-1007) is the primary daily workload. Lu-177 PSMA / DOTATATE theranostic doses can be drawn in the same isolator — no second capital purchase when the programme grows.

Based on: FLEX product page

Read source ↗

FLEX at a glance

100 mm

Lead shielding

India cyclotron configuration

Grade A

Cleanroom class

The strictest pharma defines

F-18 + Lu

Two isotopes

PET today, theranostic tomorrow

35+

Sites worldwide

manufacturer-published install base

For the technical reader

The plain-English cards above are buyer-facing. The full GMP / LIMS stack — EU Annex 3, Annex 1 (revised 2022), Annex 11, WHO TRS 1025 Annex 2 and the AERB cyclotron-facility document — is mapped requirement-by-requirement against FLEX features in the Radiopharmacist's compliance post. That's the page to send your QA / RA lead.

Manufacturer reference

The Manufacturer product page with specification, automation options and accessory catalogue.