Swisslog Healthcare Enhances AutoPack™ System with New Features to Boost Efficiency and Flexibility in Hospital Pharmacies
Swisslog Healthcare, a global leader in pharmacy automation and transport solutions, has unveiled a suite of new features designed to further improve the capabilities of its flagship AutoPack™ Automated Oral Solid Packager. The newly introduced U-Canister and Variable Heater are engineered to enhance the system’s operational flexibility, support pharmacy workflows, and ultimately enable hospital pharmacists to dedicate more time to patient-focused care.
With healthcare systems worldwide continuing to face labor shortages and increasing demands on staff, hospitals are turning to technology to streamline operations and reduce the burden on pharmacy teams. Swisslog Healthcare’s AutoPack system is already a key player in this transformation, offering a reliable solution for automating the packaging of oral solid medications. Now, with these latest enhancements, the AutoPack becomes even more indispensable in addressing the needs of modern healthcare environments.
Advancing Pharmacy Automation with a Smarter Solution
The AutoPack Automated Oral Solid Packager has been a cornerstone of Swisslog Healthcare’s pharmacy automation lineup. Designed to simplify and accelerate the packaging process for oral solid medications, the AutoPack enables hospitals to automate tasks that would otherwise require significant manual labor. The system supports up to 480 medications in a single unit and is compatible with or without integration into a hospital’s information system (HIS), making it highly versatile.
Pharmacies using AutoPack can either pre-package medications into unit doses or fulfill on-demand medication orders, offering operational flexibility for a variety of clinical settings. By automating these repetitive packaging tasks, the AutoPack significantly reduces the risk of human error while improving the accuracy and organization of medication dispensing.
Now, Swisslog Healthcare is taking this system to the next level with the introduction of two innovative new features: the U-Canister and the Variable Heater.
U-Canister: More Capacity, Greater Flexibility
One of the key additions to the AutoPack platform is the U-Canister, a redesigned canister that offers expanded functionality for handling complex medication types. Capable of holding up to 280 tablets, the U-Canister is specially designed to accommodate a wide range of tablet forms, including halved tablets and those with irregular or unique shapes. This functionality is particularly beneficial for long-term care patients who may have individualized medication regimens requiring specialized packaging.
The U-Canister’s internal chute has been engineered to accommodate larger tablets while maintaining accurate single-tablet dispensing. This is essential to ensuring dose accuracy and patient safety. Furthermore, the canister’s internal cup is swappable, allowing for a simplified process when switching between different medications. This feature enhances the AutoPack’s ability to manage inventory that isn’t preloaded into the system’s main canister bank, offering pharmacies greater flexibility in how they store and dispense medications.
With the U-Canister, hospital pharmacies can expand the range of medications handled by the AutoPack, supporting a more comprehensive and patient-specific packaging solution. It also reduces the time spent manually sorting and preparing less commonly used or irregular tablets, allowing pharmacy staff to focus on higher-value tasks.
Variable Heater: Customizable Packaging for Workflow Optimization
Another major enhancement to the AutoPack is the Variable Heater, which is now a standard feature across all new units. The Variable Heater enables technicians to select from a range of output package sizes—specifically 50 mm, 56 mm, 65 mm, 75 mm, 85 mm, and 95 mm—depending on their operational needs. This adjustable packaging option supports better alignment with hospital workflows, such as automated dispensing unit (ADU) systems and cartfill processes.
By optimizing package lengths, pharmacies can minimize wasted space, improve medication storage efficiency, and streamline the integration of pre-packaged medications into broader distribution systems. Smaller package sizes also enhance compatibility with robotic dispensing systems and automated cabinets, further supporting the push toward full automation within hospital settings.
The Variable Heater’s ability to tailor packaging size to specific use cases contributes to reduced material costs and less physical storage space for medications—key considerations for pharmacies looking to operate more sustainably and cost-effectively.
Designed for Diverse Pharmacy Environments
The AutoPack system is available in two styles and nine different capacity configurations, ranging from 244 to 480 canisters. This level of scalability ensures that the solution can be tailored to fit the unique needs of both small community hospitals and large-scale academic medical centers. Pharmacies can start with a smaller capacity and scale up as needed, making AutoPack a future-ready investment.
Each AutoPack unit includes a Special Tablet System (STS) Tray and AutoCanisters™, which are specifically designed to handle unique dispensing needs such as half tablets, low-demand medications, and tablets with unusual shapes. These features reduce the complexity of managing a diverse medication inventory and help standardize the packaging process across a wider range of pharmaceutical products.
In addition to its robust features, the AutoPack is built with modularity in mind. The main frame packaging unit can be easily replaced, minimizing downtime and improving serviceability. This thoughtful design ensures that maintenance and upgrades can be performed with minimal disruption to day-to-day pharmacy operations.
Supporting the Healthcare Workforce
Connie Vigil, Business Analyst at Swisslog Healthcare, emphasized the broader impact of the AutoPack’s new features on pharmacy operations and the healthcare system as a whole.
“These new features upgrade the AutoPack, creating a more comprehensive packaging solution to improve efficiency and address critical workforce shortages in hospital pharmacies,” Vigil said. “These pharmacy automation additions save time, reduce costs, and improve organization and accuracy in medication management.”
The U.S. healthcare system, like many others around the world, is currently grappling with a shortage of qualified pharmacy staff. Automation solutions like AutoPack play a vital role in alleviating the pressure on pharmacists and pharmacy technicians, allowing them to focus more on clinical roles, medication therapy management, and direct patient care.
A Strategic Move Toward the Future of Pharmacy
The introduction of the U-Canister and Variable Heater reflects Swisslog Healthcare’s commitment to continuous innovation in healthcare automation. As hospitals face mounting challenges including staffing constraints, budget limitations, and a growing patient population, investments in smart, scalable automation technologies are becoming essential.
By enhancing its AutoPack system, Swisslog Healthcare is providing hospital pharmacies with a more capable and adaptable tool that supports the safe, efficient, and cost-effective delivery of care. These new features also help ensure medication availability and accuracy, contributing to improved patient outcomes and greater operational resilience.
Swisslog Healthcare’s advancements underscore the growing role of automation not just as a labor-saving tool, but as a strategic enabler of quality care. With the AutoPack system now more powerful than ever, hospital pharmacies are better equipped to meet today’s demands—and prepare for tomorrow’s.
