PR: Holographic labels successfully prescribed in battle to foil counterfeiters

New data has revealed that speciality security printer Eltronis has successfully aided the resurgence of two pharmaceutical brands that saw massive falls in sales due to Russian counterfeiters.

Pharma companies Biotehnos and Rompharm, both based in Romania, had seen significant declines in sales of their Alflutop and Rumalon brands in Russia. On investigation, it became apparent that the success of both brands had made them a lucrative target for counterfeiters, to the extent that almost half of the branded drugs in the Russian market were showing as fake.

Not only did these counterfeits impact on sales by replacing genuine products with those of unknown quality, the high percentage of fakes meant that doctors had lost confidence in the brands and stopped prescribing them, causing patients to suffer.Following discussions with Eltronis, holographic labels were recommended for both brands to help protect them from the counterfeiters. Importantly, the solutions also focused on re-building brand confidence among medical professionals.

Pete Smallwood, Business Development Manager for Eltronis, said: “Not only did our holographic labels counter the decreases seen in sales but, as doctors once again felt confident in prescribing these medicines, patients were able to benefit from receiving the best treatment for their illnesses.”

Eltronis designed and manufactured a security label with a hot-stamp hologram for Alflutop to use on both its ampoules and branded cartons. The sophisticated design used a combination of high quality overt and covert embossed security features.

This, combined with Eltronis’ advanced adhesive technology, which allows the label to be applied to both the ampoule and its packaging, created an effective security solution that was virtually impossible to counterfeit and provided quick and easy authentication of genuine Alflutop products.

Rompharm chose a demetallised hologram label for Rumalon across both its ampoule and carton packaging. This integrated the latest holographic security techniques, including a 3D glass relief, and was rolled out across the portfolio.

The high-quality security holograms gave an immediate means of verification for both brands and campaigns were undertaken to ensure doctors were clear on what features to look for and to help identify any fakes.

Within a year, confidence increased significantly amongst medical professionals, and the latest data has shown that sales volumes have now recovered to previous levels.

“To date, millions of units of both pharmaceuticals have been protected through using our security labels,” said Pete. “We knew how important it was to provide a solution to make counterfeiting much more difficult and enable medical staff to immediately identify genuine medicines.

“Both brands are now trusted by medics in Russia and patients are once again benefitting from their prescription and use in the treatment of their illnesses.”

About Eltronis

Founded in 2003, Eltronis is a privately owned speciality security printer which has established itself as a trusted partner for a wide range of global brand owners, pharmaceutical suppliers and automotive manufacturers alongside its various long-standing governmental projects.

Headquartered in the UK and with manufacturing in Eastern Europe, Eltronis combines all forms of traditional security print with digital and holographic technologies. By identifying the key issues faced by each customer, the business ensures its unique and often patented solutions meet the specific needs of each project.

As an established supplier of security solutions for governments worldwide, Eltronis offers a single source supply for security documents such national IDs, voter programmes, tax stamps and driving licences.

Production is within a guarded and patrolled environment with full access control, CCTV, secure storage and waste destruction. Eltronis is ISO certified for Quality, Environmental and Health and Safety and is a member of the IHMA.