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Automatic Rotary Vial Washing Machine

Automatic Rotary Vial Washing Machine Model LI-VRW
Rotary Vial Washer — Model LI-VRW

Automatic Rotary Vial Washing Machine Manufacturer

Automatic Rotary Vial Washing Machine Model LI-VRW washes glass vials with no machine part touching the body of the glass. A gripper system holds each vial by the neck, inverts it for the whole washing operation and then releases it onto the outfeed star wheel in an upright position — which is what makes the wash positive on every vial. The machine handles 2ml to 100ml glass vials and containers with the help of change parts, and is built for injectable lines in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries.

  • ModelLI-VRW 120 / LI-VRW 240
  • Production OutputMax. 120 or 240 vials per minute
  • Vial Size2ml to 100ml with change parts
  • Power Specification4 H.P., 3 Phase 50 Hertz
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Working Principle of Automatic Rotary Vial Washing Machine

Glass vials are fed through a turn table onto the infeed star wheel, which meters them into the machine in a single controlled stream. A specially designed gripper picks up each vial by the neck, inverts it into a neck-down position and carries it onto the rotary moving system, where the washing takes place.

The inverted vials travel above the washing needles and move along with the needle bar. Because the bar travels with the vial instead of waiting for it to stop, the needle stays inside the vial neck for the maximum possible time once it has entered — so each vial gets a longer wash without the line slowing down for it.

The standard build carries six different washing stations, and the media sequence across them can be changed to suit a specific process. Internal washing is backed by an external wash mechanism, so the outer surface of the vial is cleaned in the same pass as the inside, and each washing zone runs on its own independent circuit so that one stage's media does not carry over into the next.

Once the cycle is complete the gripper turns the vial back to the vertical, neck-up position and releases it onto the outfeed star wheel — ready to move on to the depyrogenation tunnel or the filling area. The machine is suited to pharmaceutical and biotech applications and handles 2ml to 100ml glass vials and containers with the help of change parts.

Salient Features of Automatic Rotary Vial Washing Machine

  • 18 Jets for 6 Internal washing zones.
  • 6 Jets for External Washing of Vials.
  • All contact parts made of SS 316 material.
  • Machine construction in SS 304 Material.
  • 10 Cassette of Grippers each having 3 Grippers.
  • Suitable for 2ml to 50ml and in special design up to 100ml size.
  • Washing sequence can be made as per customers’ requirements.
  • Optionally available 2 Pumps and 2 Tanks.
  • Each washing zone with independent circuit to avoid contamination.
  • Automatic Infeed and Exit of Vials.

Technical Specification of Automatic Rotary Vial Washing Machine

Model LI-VRW 120 LI-VRW 240
Suitable For 2ml to 100ml Vials with the help of change parts
Production Output Max. 120 per minute Max. 240 per minute
Input Specification:
Vial Diameter 14mm to 56mm 14mm to 56mm
Vial Height 32mm to 110mm 32mm to 110mm
Power Specification 4 H.P., 3 Phase 50 Hertz, 4 wire system 4 H.P., 3 Phase 50 Hertz, 4 wire system
Optional Accessories Programmable Logic Control (System) with MMI Aluminium Profile Cabinet covering full machine Programmable Logic Control (System) with MMI Aluminium Profile Cabinet covering full machine
Utility Requirement:
Air Consumption 20 CFM 20 CFM
Water Consumption 250 to 500 Litre per hour depending on Vial Size 250 to 500 Litre per hour depending on Vial Size
Water Tank & Pump 2 nos. each with 25 Litres Capacity & Centrifugal pumps
Conveyor Height 875-950 mm adjustable
Overall Dimension 2050mm (L) X 2000mm (W) X 1210mm (H) 2450mm (L) X 2000mm (W) X 1300mm (H)
* Specification can be changed as per customers’ requirements

Industries Using Automatic Rotary Vial Washing Machine

  • Pharmaceutical Industry Washing ampoules, vials and bottles before injectable and liquid filling.
  • Vaccine Industry Vial cleaning ahead of sterile vaccine filling lines.
  • Ayurvedic Industry Glass containers for herbal injectables, arks and liquid preparations.
  • Cosmetic Industry Bottles and vials for serums, lotions and ampoule-based skincare.
  • Nutraceutical Industry Containers for liquid supplements and tonics.
  • Laboratories & Research Centers Small-batch container preparation for pilot and R&D runs.

Automatic Rotary Vial Washing Machine FAQs

An Automatic Rotary Vial Washing Machine is a high-precision, cGMP-compliant machine designed to thoroughly clean the internal and external surfaces of glass vials before they enter the sterile filling area. What makes the rotary design the gold standard in pharmaceutical manufacturing is its unique gripper-based inversion system — each vial is individually gripped from the neck, inverted to a neck-down position, washed with multiple sequential media through precisely positioned needles, and then re-inverted back to an upright position before exiting the machine.
Unlike simpler vial washers, the rotary machine operates in continuous rotary motion — meaning there is no stop-start, no interruption, no waiting. Vials flow in, get cleaned to a pharmaceutical-grade standard, and flow out — continuously and consistently — at high speed. This combination of thorough cleaning, gentle glass handling, and high throughput is precisely why the rotary vial washing machine is the machine of choice on WHO-GMP, USFDA, and EU GMP injectable lines across the world.

Understanding the working sequence helps you appreciate just how well-engineered this machine is. Here is how it works from start to finish:
Empty glass vials are loaded onto an infeed turntable, which meters them into an infeed star wheel in a controlled, single-file stream. A specially designed gripper mechanism picks up each vial individually from the infeed star wheel — gripping it securely at the neck — and inverts it into a neck-down position. The inverted vial now travels along the rotary system above a set of washing needles that enter the vial neck. These needles are synchronized with the moving vials through a reciprocating motion — the needles enter the vial, deliver the washing media, and retract — all while the vial keeps moving continuously.
The machine cycles through six washing stations, each equipped with six needles, providing both internal and external wash sequences using recycled water, purified water (PW), Water for Injection (WFI), and compressed sterile air in a programmable sequence. Once all washing cycles are complete, the gripper re-inverts the vial back to its upright (neck-up) position and releases it onto the outfeed star wheel, from where it exits onto an output tray or directly into a depyrogenation tunnel for sterilization before filling. The entire journey of each vial through the machine is smooth, controlled, and contact-minimized — exactly as GMP requires.

This is one of the most technically significant aspects of the LI-VRW, and it directly impacts both your product quality and your regulatory compliance standing.
Most older or simpler vial washing machines hold vials from the body — using cups, holders, or platforms that contact the glass body of the vial. This approach has two problems: first, it creates mechanical stress on the glass body during inversion and transport; second, the contact points on the vial body can transfer contamination or create surface marks.
The Lodha LI-VRW's neck gripper system holds each vial only from the neck — the single most mechanically robust part of the vial geometry. This means the vial body, shoulder, and base are never touched by machine parts during the entire washing process. The result is minimum machine-to-glass contact, which means minimum contamination risk, minimum glass chipping, and a cleaner, more compliant washing process. Regulatory inspectors from USFDA and EU GMP specifically look at how vials are handled during washing — a neck-grip system consistently earns favorable audit comments as a demonstration of contamination control thinking.

Yes — without reservation. The Lodha Automatic Rotary Vial Washing Machine Model LI-VRW is designed, manufactured, and validated to comply with the full spectrum of pharmaceutical regulatory requirements applicable to injectable manufacturing:
For Indian manufacturers targeting domestic approvals or WHO pre-qualification, the machine meets Schedule M (Revised) cGMP requirements under the Drugs & Cosmetics Act, including the requirements for container washing and preparation in sterile manufacturing areas.
For USFDA-regulated manufacturers, the machine's design addresses 21 CFR Part 211 requirements for equipment construction, cleanability, and process validation. PLC-based control with 21 CFR Part 11 compliant data logging is available as an option.
For EU GMP manufacturers, the machine's continuous rotary motion, enclosed washing dome, separation of pre-washing and final washing media, and WFI-compatible washing system aligns with EU GMP Annex 1 (Manufacture of Sterile Medicinal Products) requirements for container washing and preparation.
For WHO pre-qualification submissions, the machine's GMP-compliant construction, documented change control, and validation support provided by Lodha make it a solid foundation for your technical dossier.
All water-contact parts are fabricated from SS 316L stainless steel — the material standard specified in pharmacopoeial guidelines for equipment in contact with pharmaceutical-grade water systems.

The LI-VRW supports a full, configurable multi-media wash sequence across its six washing stations, each with six needles — giving you 36 individual cleaning needles in total across the entire washing zone. The standard wash sequence configuration includes:
Internal wash cycle:
  • Station 1–2: Recycled water wash — pre-rinse using recirculated water to remove gross contamination and reduce WFI consumption in downstream stations
  • Station 3: Purified Water (PW) wash — intermediate rinse meeting pharmacopoeial water quality
  • Station 4: Water for Injection (WFI) wash — the final critical rinse meeting the highest pharmaceutical water standard
  • Station 5–6: Sterile compressed air blows — removes residual water from the vial interior, ensuring vials enter the depyrogenation tunnel or filling zone as dry as possible
External wash:
  • One dedicated external water wash station and one external air wash station clean the outside surface of each inverted vial simultaneously
The sequence is fully programmable — you can adjust which stations deliver which media based on your product requirements, validation protocol, and regulatory submission. For some products, additional WFI stations may be required; for others, the recycled water pre-wash may be extended. This flexibility makes the LI-VRW genuinely adaptable across different product lines and regulatory frameworks.

WFI is one of the most expensive utilities in a pharmaceutical injectable manufacturing facility — producing it requires a validated multi-effect distillation or vapor compression system, and every litre consumed has a real cost impact. The Lodha LI-VRW incorporates a WFI conservation design: water used in the early pre-wash stations is collected in a recirculating water tank and reused for the recycled water pre-wash stages. Only the final critical wash stations use freshly generated WFI.
This means your WFI consumption per vial washed is significantly lower than it would be if WFI were used across all washing stations — which is both a cost efficiency benefit and an operational sustainability consideration. For large-scale injectable manufacturers washing tens of thousands of vials per shift, this WFI recirculation design delivers measurable savings in utility costs and reduces the load on your WFI generation system — extending its operational life and reducing maintenance frequency.

The Lodha LI-VRW is specifically designed for pre-filling internal and external washing of glass vials used across the full range of pharmaceutical injectable products. Key applications include:
  • Small volume parenterals (SVPs) — antibiotics (ceftriaxone, piperacillin-tazobactam, meropenem), analgesics, antifungals, antivirals
  • Large volume parenterals (LVPs) — IV solutions in larger vial formats
  • Lyophilized/freeze-dried injectables — where glass vials must be scrupulously clean and free from any particle before lyophilization
  • Biological products and biosimilars — where particulate-free container preparation is a regulatory priority
  • Oncology/cytotoxic injectables — requiring stringent cleaning validation and container cleanliness documentation
  • Ophthalmic preparations in vials — eye drop solutions and sterile ophthalmic formulations
  • Vaccines — where container cleanliness is part of the overall sterility assurance system
If you are manufacturing any of these product categories, the Automatic Rotary Vial Washing Machine is not optional — it is a mandatory line component that drug regulatory authorities expect to see in your injectable manufacturing layout.

Validation is the backbone of pharmaceutical manufacturing compliance, and the LI-VRW is designed to support it at every level. The machine's consistent, repeatable rotary motion means every vial in every batch receives exactly the same washing treatment — the same number of wash strokes per station, the same media sequence, the same contact time. This consistency is the foundation of a successful Installation Qualification (IQ), Operational Qualification (OQ), and Performance Qualification (PQ) validation protocol.
The PLC-controlled version of the machine generates electronic batch records of all critical process parameters — wash cycle duration, water pressure at each station, air pressure, vial count per batch, alarm events, and operator interventions. These records support your batch manufacturing record (BMR) documentation and are essential for regulatory submissions under 21 CFR Part 11 (USFDA) or Annex 11 (EU GMP) electronic records requirements.
Lodha International LLP also provides Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT) and Site Acceptance Testing (SAT) support as part of the machine commissioning process, helping your quality and engineering teams complete the validation cycle efficiently and with documented evidence.

Yes — and this is an area where many Ayurvedic manufacturers are now upgrading their facilities as the AYUSH sector matures and regulatory requirements tighten. Classical Ayurvedic injectable preparations — such as Ayurvedic parenteral formulations classified under Schedule T of the Drugs & Cosmetics Act — are subject to the same sterile manufacturing requirements as conventional pharmaceutical injectables. This means the vial washing process must meet pharmacopoeial water standards, and the washing equipment must be GMP-compliant.
Beyond strictly injectable formulations, progressive Ayurvedic companies targeting export markets, institutional supply, and premium domestic channels are voluntarily adopting pharmaceutical-grade manufacturing practices — including rotary vial washing — to differentiate their manufacturing quality and support regulatory approvals in international markets. If your Ayurvedic company is building or upgrading a sterile liquid formulation line, the LI-VRW gives you a machine that meets both current AYUSH GMP requirements and international regulatory expectations.

Ayurvedic ophthalmic preparations — including medicated eye drops based on Ayurvedic formulations like Triphala Ghrit, Mahatriphala Ghrit, or herb-infused eye solutions — and nasal preparations like Anu Taila are among the most quality-sensitive products in the Ayurvedic pharmacopoeia. These preparations are administered directly into the eye or nasal passage, meaning contamination — even a single foreign particle — is not just a quality failure, it is a direct patient safety risk.
The LI-VRW's multi-stage WFI washing with sterile air drying ensures every glass vial destined for ophthalmic or nasal Ayurvedic preparations is cleaned to the highest pharmacopoeial standard. The neck-grip inversion system ensures zero body contact and no glass particle generation during washing. And the machine's continuous rotary motion means every vial in your batch receives identical washing — giving you the process consistency that AYUSH GMP auditors and state drug authority inspectors look for when they review your sterile Ayurvedic formulation line.

This is a question many growing Ayurvedic manufacturers ask as they scale up, and the answer is clear once you understand what changes between the two machine types.
A semi-automatic multijet washer like the LI-MJ works well for small batch sizes and low throughput — but it has limitations that become increasingly problematic as you grow. It requires manual loading and unloading, which introduces human touch points into the washing process — a contamination risk that GMP frameworks seek to minimize. Its intermittent washing action means each vial gets a fixed washing time that cannot be extended without slowing the line. And its output — typically a few hundred vials per hour — simply cannot keep pace with a growing production demand.
The LI-VRW eliminates all of these limitations. It is fully automatic — from infeed turntable to outfeed delivery into the tunnel — with no manual contact during the washing process. Its continuous rotary motion ensures maximized washing time per vial through synchronized needle travel. Its output capacity handles hundreds of vials per minute, matching the throughput of modern automated filling lines. And its full GMP compliance documentation, validation support, and WFI compatibility positions your Ayurvedic manufacturing unit for international regulatory approval — opening markets that your current equipment cannot support.

Yes — particularly for cosmetic companies producing premium ampoule-format products where glass vial cleanliness is non-negotiable. The cosmetic industry's use of glass vials has grown significantly in recent years across:
  • Single-use vitamin C and hyaluronic acid ampoules — high-end skincare serums in individual glass ampoules
  • Hair treatment keratin and protein ampoules — salon-professional glass vial formats
  • Anti-aging concentrated serum ampoules — luxury skincare line packaging
  • Essential oil and aromatherapy glass vials — therapeutic and wellness product packaging
  • Cosmeceutical injectable-adjacent formulations — where the product straddles the cosmetic-pharmaceutical boundary
For all these applications, the pre-filling cleanliness of the glass vial is directly linked to product stability, shelf life, and consumer experience. A serum filled into a vial with residual glass dust or manufacturing debris will show particulate contamination — immediately visible to the end consumer when they hold the ampoule up to light, and a certain cause of product returns and brand damage. The LI-VRW's thorough multi-stage washing ensures your premium cosmetic glass vials are particle-free and impeccably clean before your high-value formulations go in.

Absolutely — and having the right washing equipment is one of the earliest and most important decisions in building an export-compliant ampoule line. For cosmetic manufacturers targeting:
EU Markets — Under ISO 22716 (Cosmetic GMP) and the EU Cosmetics Regulation (EC No 1223/2009), you must demonstrate that your manufacturing process includes validated container preparation steps. EU buyer audits and notified body assessments will examine your vial preparation process, and a GMP-certified rotary washing machine with documented wash parameters provides strong evidence of manufacturing hygiene control.
GCC / Gulf Markets — ESMA standards and GSO cosmetic regulations require GMP-compliant production. Gulf distributors conducting factory audits increasingly look at equipment certification and manufacturing process documentation — a Lodha LI-VRW with its ISO 9001:2015-backed manufacturing credentials and validated performance supports your audit submissions.
US Markets — FDA's cosmetic GMP guidance (21 CFR Part 700-740) and the more recent MoCRA (Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act, 2022) requirements for cosmetic facility registration and GMP compliance make proper container preparation equipment part of your regulatory exposure management.
Lodha International LLP's ISO 9001:2015 manufacturing credentials and CE-compatible machine design give you the documentation foundation that international market compliance requires.

Yes — the machine handles vials and ampoules from 2 ml to 100 ml with change parts, which covers the full range of cosmetic ampoule formats (1 ml, 2 ml, 5 ml, 10 ml ampoules). The key design feature that protects delicate cosmetic glass ampoules is the neck-grip inversion system — the machine never touches the glass body, only the neck. This means the thin glass walls of small-format cosmetic ampoules are never subjected to body-contact mechanical stress — eliminating the risk of microfractures, surface scratching, or chipping that could compromise the ampoule's integrity and the product's shelf life.
Additionally, the smooth infeed turntable feeding and continuous rotary transport means there are no sudden stops, no jarring impacts, and no glass-on-glass abrasion during the washing process — all of which are critical when handling premium-quality glass ampoules destined for luxury cosmetic products.

The Lodha LI-VRW is offered in two variants — the LI-VRW 120 at a maximum of 120 vials per minute (approximately 7,200 vials per hour) and the LI-VRW 240 at a maximum of 240 vials per minute (approximately 14,400 vials per hour), with actual output depending on vial size and configuration. This high throughput makes it one of the fastest pre-filling vial washing solutions available for pharmaceutical injectable lines.
To put this in context: a semi-automatic multijet washer typically processes a few hundred to a few thousand vials per hour with manual loading. The LI-VRW's fully automatic continuous rotary design delivers 5x to 10x the throughput of semi-automatic alternatives — while simultaneously delivering a higher and more consistent quality of wash due to its synchronized needle-inversion system. For any pharmaceutical or cosmetic manufacturer operating a medium to large production volume, this throughput advantage directly translates to higher production efficiency, lower cost per unit, and the ability to meet market demand without line bottlenecks.

The washing zone of the LI-VRW is enclosed in a protective dome structure that houses six individual washing stations. Each station has six washing needles — giving a total of 36 needles across the entire washing zone. Here is what makes the needle system technically exceptional:
The washing needles do not simply spray — they are synchronized with the moving vials through a reciprocating motion. As the vial (held inverted by the gripper) moves continuously along the rotary path, the needle bar moves with it in the same direction and at the same speed. This synchronized travel means the needle can enter the vial neck smoothly while the vial is still moving — without any mechanical impact or misalignment. The needle delivers the washing media, then retracts — all within a single synchronized travel stroke.
This approach, often called a "dive-in" or "follow-through" needle system, ensures maximum needle residence time inside the vial neck — maximizing washing efficacy — while completely eliminating the risk of needle-to-glass contact injury that could generate glass particles inside the very vial being cleaned. It is a mechanically elegant solution that is at the heart of why the rotary vial washer outperforms all other vial washing approaches in demanding pharmaceutical applications.

Material selection in a pharmaceutical washing machine is a regulatory requirement, not just an engineering preference. The Lodha LI-VRW is built to the following material standards:
All parts that contact washing media (needles, internal piping, water tanks, pumps, and manifolds) are fabricated from SS 316L stainless steel — the pharmaceutical standard material for WFI-contact surfaces specified in pharmacopoeial guidelines (USP, EP, IP). SS 316L's low carbon content makes it resistant to sensitization and corrosion under repeated WFI and purified water exposure — critical for maintaining water quality integrity through the washing process.
All non-contact structural parts are fabricated from SS 304 stainless steel — providing the same corrosion resistance and GMP-compliant finish for the machine frame, conveyor, and external surfaces.
Why does this matter practically? SS 316L construction ensures that the washing machine itself does not contribute any metallic ions, corrosion products, or contaminants to the water passing through it — meaning the quality of your WFI going into the machine comes out at the same quality from the needle, directly into your vial. This material integrity is verified during IQ validation and is expected to be documented in your equipment qualification protocol.

Both — and this is one of the key operational advantages of the Lodha LI-VRW over simpler washing machine designs. While the primary focus of pre-filling vial washing is the internal surface (where your product will directly contact the glass), the external surface also requires cleaning — especially for vials that have come from glass manufacturers and may carry surface dust, glass powder, or manufacturing residues on their outer surface.
The LI-VRW includes dedicated external washing stations — one external water wash and one external air wash — that clean the outside of each inverted vial simultaneously while internal washing proceeds. The result is a vial that is clean both inside and outside before it enters your filling area — which is important both for product integrity and for the cleanliness of your clean room / controlled environment, where externally dirty vials would shed particulate into the classified air.

After completing the full washing cycle, clean vials are re-inverted to an upright neck-up position by the gripper release mechanism and delivered onto the outfeed star wheel. From here, they can be directed to one of two destinations depending on your production line configuration:
Direct tunnel connection — for high-speed pharmaceutical injectable lines, the LI-VRW outfeed connects directly to the infeed of a depyrogenation / sterilization tunnel (hot air tunnel). Clean, wet vials enter the tunnel immediately after washing, where they are dried and depyrogenated at high temperature before emerging into the sterile filling zone. This direct machine-to-tunnel connection is the preferred configuration for large-scale injectable manufacturers as it eliminates any intermediate handling of clean vials and maintains the cleanliness chain from wash to fill.
Output tray collection — for smaller lines, multi-product facilities, or standalone washing operations, washed vials can be collected on an output tray, tray-loaded into containers, and transferred manually or via conveyor to the next process step. This gives operational flexibility for manufacturers who are not yet running a fully integrated line.

Getting the right machine configuration for your specific product, vial size range, and production speed is a technical conversation — and Lodha Pharma's team is well-equipped to guide you through it. Reach out with details about your vial size range, target output speed, product type, and regulatory framework, and they will recommend the right LI-VRW model and options for your needs.
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Lodha International LLP has been a trusted pharmaceutical machinery partner since 1995, with 1,550+ machines installed across 50+ countries — including in some of the most demanding WHO-GMP and USFDA-regulated manufacturing environments in India and globally.

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Very good quality pharmaceutical machinery manufacturer. Using tablet press machine, ointment tube filling line, Liquid Filling Line and ancillary equipments from last 3 years. Good quality machines and support

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Very High Quality Pharmaceutical Machines. Our company using capsule filling and tablet manufacturing line from this company... Very nice service and support. Recently ordered rotary tube filling machine. Specially thanks to Mr. Dhananjay and Team for support

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Top-notch pharmaceutical machinery producer located in Ahmedabad. We have been utilizing the Capsule Filling Machine and servo liquid filling machine for the past two years, benefiting from excellent service support provided by LODHA.

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High quality pharmaceutical machinery manufacturer in Ahmedabad. We are using liquid filling machine from last 2 years in Australia with great service support by LODHA Team

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Highly recommended this company for Capsule Machinery and equipment, we purchase Capsule Filling Machine since 3 year and we are very satisfied from that one, & Specifically thanks to Mr. Dhananjay Lodha for always quick support and service.

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Specially thanks to Mr. Dhananjay Lodha for quick support and service provided for capsule filling machine and tablet press we bought last year. Highly recommended this company for capsule and tablet production equipments.

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