A CJB Applied Technologies customer can grow their competitive edge by using our integrated approach to product and formulation development.
Greenhouses play an important role during the formulation development process. That’s where scientists can test the characteristics, performance, and quality of multiple formulation candidates at one time.
Here is how greenhouse operations are used in formulation development and why a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) such as CJB Applied Technologies should have this service on-site.
How Is a Greenhouse Used in Formulation Development?
A greenhouse is a controlled environment where the testing of formulation candidates takes place. You can adjust specific variables under supervised conditions to see if the candidates have the desired impact on various plant species and pests.
Different soils and growing conditions may be used during this performance testing. Pests such as fungi and bacteria can be brought in (inoculation) to measure the formulation candidates’ effect on them. You may also need to test for phytotoxicity to find out if the formulations are safe for a crop. Chemical concentrations can be altered to see if plant safety still exists at 3x and 4x typical use rates.
Greenhouse testing allows you to change elements as necessary to match real-world situations and present new challenges. You can introduce variables as well as limit external factors. For example—in a field trial—wind, hail, rainfall, lack of, or overabundance of pest pressure can create confusion and take the focus off of what you’re trying to discover about candidate formulations. You can eliminate such issues in a greenhouse.
The role of the greenhouse is key when it comes to cost-effectiveness. When you’re developing a formula, you may start out with a multitude of candidates. If you were to do field trials on each of them, costs would quickly add up. A greenhouse gives you the ability to test to narrow the candidate formulation choices down to two or three that will likely perform the best. The lesser number of formulation candidates can then be taken to field trials, at a much-reduced cost.
What Is the Benefit of Having a Greenhouse On-Site?
CJB Applied Technologies has a greenhouse at our new technology center. We can take a dozen formulation candidates straight from the lab into the greenhouse and start testing without delay. If we need to adjust the formulas, we can go back and forth from the greenhouse to the lab—tweaking and testing as needed—until we accomplish our goal and shrink the pool of candidates.
If a CDMO doesn’t have a greenhouse, the organization must outsource this step of formulation development to a third party. The contractor has to fit the CDMO’s greenhouse testing into their schedule, which could cause delays. The CDMO will have to pass down the cost of using the other business’s greenhouse operations to the customer.
Having a greenhouse on-site at CJB Applied Technologies makes us more efficient and effective in completing formulation development projects for our customers. We can test candidates in the greenhouse whenever we want instead of waiting to be worked into someone else’s schedule. There’s also less chance of miscommunication because we don’t have to depend on another organization.
Being able to take candidates directly from the lab to the greenhouse improves the chance of success for every formulation development project managed by CJB Applied Technologies. Based on the outcomes of greenhouse tests, we can make changes to a formulation to improve it and seamlessly transition into the next phase of formulation development.
How Greenhouse Operations Aid Formulation Development
Now you know the role a greenhouse plays in the formulation development process and why CJB Applied Technologies has such an important facility on-site.
With our lab and greenhouse on the same property, we can test candidate formulations more effectively and efficiently to better serve our customers.
CJB Applied Technologies can help you take your chemical product idea to market faster. Contact us today to get started!
