Can I change the tooling? Is it easy to change the tooling? Does the tooling wear out and break?
Yes, you can change the tooling. It is fairly easy. It takes about an hour or so the first time you do it, but you will get quicker. An LFA technician can do it in around 10 minutes - practice makes perfect!
The tooling does wear out. How long this takes will depend on your product formulation. The more granular it is, the faster your tooling will wear down.
How do I know when is the best time to change the tooling? In other words, what is the lifetime of the tooling for this machine?
The tooling on the TDP 1.5 is extremely durable. The life of your tooling, however, will depend on a number of things. This includes the shape of your tooling, the formulation of your mix, and the steel that the tooling is made from.
There are a number of questions to ask when determining the life of your tooling:
Does it have any chips or damage to the edge of the upper and lower punch? This section is called the land. If this is damaged it will show up in each tablet as a defect.
Do the tip faces of the punches have any cracks in them?
Is there a pitted look on the top or bottom punch face?
If you measure the working length of the upper and lower punches are they still within tolerance?
Is the upper or lower punch loose within the die bore?
Does the wall of the die bore have obvious scratches or scrapes on it?
Are you still clearly able to see the image, lettering, number or logo in the face of every tablet?
If your tooling shows any of these signs, then it could indicate that it is time to replace it.