Comments on: Essential Cosmetic Lab Equipment

By: Timothy

Timothy — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 07:26:15 +0000

Hi Mohamed

I am also doing the same thing as you are maybe we can meet and share ideas. I am also in Pretoria and my contact is 0715543236.

By: Mohamed Bhyat

Mohamed Bhyat — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 08:35:45 +0000

Dear Perry,
We are setting up an aerosol and chemical Manufacturing plant in South Africa, Pretoria, and would your advise on how toset up a full scale labe, that will be used for both industrial and cosmetic chemicals,

By: Emily

Emily — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:33:48 +0000

Thanks Perry. Please see topic http://chemistscorner.com/cosmeticsciencetalk/discussion/633/scaling-up-from-lab-to-production-batches in the forum

By: Perry

Perry — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 23:50:15 +0000

Hello Emily. No this is not something we have previously discussed but it's an excellent question. To get the most input, I would suggest you post the question in the cosmetic science forum.

By: Emily

Emily — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 22:53:23 +0000

Regarding scaling up and the concept of a knockout experiment, it would be greatly appreciated if we could expand on this idea. I had a formula perfected and duplicated perfectly on smaller scales – then scaling up to large batches it did not come out. I realize there are a variety of factors that could be at play. Is there any place that you have discussed this issue further or any suggested reading? Thanks!

By: Timothy Rukuni

Timothy Rukuni — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 18:33:54 +0000

hi Perry

I am starting a skin care manufacturing business and I am on the verge of setting up a plant. can you advice me on the production equipment required and reliable suppliers of the full plant. Can you also advice on required laboratory tests.

By: Angus

Angus — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 12:51:18 +0000

If you are looking for cheaper alternatives to Brookfield viscometers, then you can try the chinese trade site alibaba.
It has numerous producers of Viscometers.

Perry is correct, Brookfield is the mark of quality, but as ever, this is usually associated with a high price. ($5000-$10000).
This is outside the range of most home grown cosmetic startups. That money can be better spent elsewhere.
Chinese suppliers will quote approx $1000-$2000 for a viscometer with a good specification. (import taxes and shipping on top of this). If you are only producing a small number of products and limited testing, you can also get this completed at an external lab with Brookfield equipment.

everything is relative, if you work for a mid to large enterprise, high grade equipment is essential. On the other hand , a mom and pop small business will require a lot more flexibility.

On hot plates, one way to remove some of the need for this is using cold processing emulsifiers. There are several on the market now that provide good results. (many formula using standard emulsifiers need to be heated to 60-80C to allow full emulsification – you then don’t need to worry so much about cooling)

Likewise with Mixers, you can easily pay over $1000 for an industrial one, but you have other options. I use a bamix mixer from the food industry. German engineering, high quality, excellent motor and under $200.

pH meter absolute essential, but lower costs than above, but again the same principles of cost versus quality.

hope this helps.
Angus

By: Perry

Perry — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 12:07:53 +0000

@Pranil – The Brookfield viscometer is the best. I’m not familiar with any other less expensive, effective option.

By: Pranil

Pranil — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 10:06:40 +0000

Dear Perry,
which simple & easy method to measure viscosity for cream, lotion & styling gel.
Brookfield viscometer is very costly,can you suggest on this.

Regards
P.S.Pednekar

By: Perry

Perry — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 06:02:21 +0000

Yes, there will be changes needed (depending on the formula of course). You should do a knockout experiment before you send it to scale up