710491Development of prototype to demonstrate the production options for the use of SofMat 3D technology in sequential marking within the pharmaceutical sector.ClosedGRD Proof of ConceptInnovate UKThe cost to the UK economy of counterfeit products has been estimated at £9billion per year (ICC Commercial Crime Services Ref CIB-9-0556 11-11-2009). All areas of the economy are affected by counterfeit goods, from branded clothing through critical goods such as pharmaceuticals and automotive & aerospace parts. No industry sector is immune from the effects of counterfeit products. The problem is seen as so great in the pharmaceutical sector that an annual conference (Anti Counterfeiting for Pharmaceuticals, May 2013) has been organised, devoted to securing the pharmaceutical supply chain to stop entry of counterfeit drugs & devices. Much time has also been devoted to globalise the legislation dealing with anti-counterfeit pharmaceutical products but no simple point of use method of product authentification has been developed so far according to information from the World Health Organisation (www.who.int/impact). The SofMat project will be used to implement pharmaceutical sector suggestions to develop a sequential 3D marking system that will be used side by side with the existing batch process. The process can be used to sequentially mark drugs without adulterating the product ensuring that FDA legislations can be easily complied with. The process is unique in the marketplace & simple in execution, using a reader with smartphone technology which will be developed during this project. This product for the first time places the identification of counterfeit goods within the supply chain rather than in the hands of the producers or governmental agencies. This allows a wider scope for identification & removal of counterfeit goods by allowing easy identification throughout the supply chain. As a follow up to this Pharmaceutical project the Company will determine whether the technology can be utilised in other sectors, eg: automotive & aerospace. These next markets have been selected using a market report that identified these as the next prime target sectors.