What is it about?
This study is a long-term health check on the city water supplied to a pharmaceutical factory in Egypt. For over three years (38 months), researchers tested water from four locations: the main water station, a restaurant, and locker rooms for production and laboratory staff. They were looking for microbial contamination to ensure the water was safe for both employees to drink and for use in manufacturing medicines. The results were a classic "good news, bad news" story. The Good News: All water samples passed the standard safety tests. No harmful bacteria like coliforms or Pseudomonas aeruginosa were found. The Bad News: When the researchers used advanced statistical tools called Shewhart control charts, they discovered a hidden problem. Even though the water never failed the tests, the levels of bacteria were fluctuating unpredictably. The system showed signs of "biological instability," meaning it was not in a consistent, controlled state. The study found that simply adding chlorine disinfectant wasn't a foolproof solution for the facility's aging (over 25 years old) pipe network.
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Why is it important?
Water quality is critical in pharmaceutical manufacturing. Contaminated water is a known source of contamination for liquid and topical medications, which can pose a risk to patients. This study is important because it shows that a simple "pass/fail" result from a water test might not be enough to guarantee safety. A water system can meet the required specifications but still be unstable and at risk of future failures. For a manufacturer, this instability is a red flag. It suggests that the aging pipes and other factors are creating an environment where microbial levels can suddenly spike, even if they haven't yet crossed the "failure" threshold. This research provides a powerful argument for companies to look deeper than just the final test results and to monitor the health of their entire water system over time.
Perspectives
This study champions a more proactive approach to quality control. Instead of waiting for a problem to happen (a failed water test), companies can use statistical process control (SPC) to monitor the stability of their systems in real-time. Think of it like this: a student who gets grades of 95%, 65%, 90%, and 70% might have a passing average, but the wide fluctuation points to an underlying issue. A student with steady grades of 85%, 86%, 84%, and 85% is much more stable and predictable. The control charts used in this study act like a monitor for that stability. By identifying "out-of-control" fluctuations early, the factory can investigate the root causes—such as problems in the old pipes or inconsistent chlorine levels—and perform targeted maintenance to prevent a major contamination event before it ever occurs. It's a shift from simply testing the water to truly understanding and controlling the entire water distribution process.
Independent Researcher & Consultant Mostafa Essam Eissa
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Determination of the Microbiological Quality of Feed City Water to Pharmaceutical Facility: Distribution Study and Statistical Analysis, Athens Journal of Sciences, May 2017, Athens Institute for Education and Research ATINER,
DOI: 10.30958/ajs.4-2-4.
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