East Yorkshire pharma packaging specialist has obtained a key lever in its long-term growth strategy, passing the international standard for the medical devices it deals in.

Origin has been awarded ISO 13485 standard after an in-depth audit.

It is seen as key to opening up more market opportunities in the UK and internationally – with Europe and Canada eyed for its in vitro diagnostics equipment.

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The Melton-headquartered company said the stringent standard, following years of investment in facilities, quality management systems and procedures, demonstrates to regulators Origin’s ongoing commitment to quality and best practice.

It can often be a prerequisite for doing business.

Rich Quelch, global head of marketing, said the certification would help Origin achieve its business goals of growing its reputation within the competitive healthcare sector – particularly among big pharma, upholding customer satisfaction, promoting better decision making, creating a culture of continual improvement and increasing employee engagement.

“Being awarded ISO 13485 status is a testament to Origin’s commitment to the highest safety and quality standards in its medical devices and packaging,” he said.

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“We’re incredibly proud of this achievement and it marks an important milestone for Origin – it will support us to engage with more pharmaceutical and healthcare companies globally.”

Staff across the business will have access to standards documentation when they need it, helping them to identify any issues, improve products and streamline the manufacturing process.

A total of 50 new policies and procedures have been brought in, with more than 750 hours of audit-related activity and two compliance audits from the certification body, working across several departments.

Investments have included a high-tech clean filling laboratory at Melton, while on the South Humber Bank, a large warehousing and onward logistics operation has been launched in Scunthorpe.

It comes as it also set up a new business unit for SnappD, its innovative single-use recyclable sachet.

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