OUR SERVICES
Micro Testing
MTC is an independent ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accredited and FDA-registered microbiological testing lab designed to protect you and your customers from ever shipping contaminated personal care products. Complying with USP and PCPC testing methods, our Micro testing services are a critical component in the development and production of safe and effective personal care products.
We test your samples the same day we receive them and immediately contact to you if we see contamination. In the event of an Out of Specification result we can help to pinpoint the source of the contamination, assist in corrections, and keep your production lines running.
USP 60 - Burkholderia cepacia complex Testing
This test determines the presence of Burkholderia cepacia complex. Test duration is seven days.
USP 61 - Microbial Testing
This test will allow quantitative enumeration of mesophilic bacteria and fungi that may grow under aerobic conditions.
USP 62 - Pathogens & Fungi Testing
This test will allow determination of the absence of, or limited occurrence of, specified microorganisms that may be detected under the conditions described.
USP 51 - Preservative Effectiveness Testing
Challenge testing ensures that the preservatives used in your product will withstand the inevitable introduction of bacteria into the product as it is used by the consumer.
Cosmetics are required to be safe when consumers use them. The best way to adhere to this requirement is to perform microbiological testing on every batch.
Stability & Compatibility Testing
Stability and Compatibility are critical quality attributes, and a well-designed stability program is a vital component for evaluating the shelf life of consumer products.
As products move through the distribution process they are subjected to a variety of temperature, and light conditions. Our Stability testing provides data about how the quality of a product or substance changes over time when exposed to various environmental factors. Compatibility testing provides data on finished goods packaging under the same environmental conditions over time to ensure the integrity of the packaging and its ability to maintain specification.
Finished goods will be placed in the six (6) environments listed below:
4°C (+/- 2°C)
25°C (+/- 2°C)
40°C (+/- 2°C)
50°C (+/- 2°C)
Freeze Thaw (3 cycles)
UV Light
Finished goods are evaluated at initial, 2 weeks, 1 month, 2 month, 3 months, and 6 months (depending on length of study) for:
Appearance
Odor
Separation
Color Change
Viscosity
pH measurements
Weight Lost
Packaging / Labeling
Stability and Compatibility should be performed on all new products and formulations to avoid any shelf life surprises.
Analytical Testing
Salicylic Acid Testing
Confirm your concentrations to ensure you are in compliance!
High-performance liquid chromatography or high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) is a chromatographic method that is used to separate a mixture of compounds in analytical chemistry and biochemistry so as to identify, quantify, or purify the individual components of the mixture.
The primary use for HPLC is the assay of active ingredients in your product. This provides assurance that the product meets labeled specifications. It also becomes important in monitoring the efficacy of product over time. Breakdown of the active ingredient is the primary concern of industry. Whether by natural aging, or the effects of storage conditions, understanding the stability of your product is of vital importance.
Using state-of-the-art Agilent Ultra HPLC technology, MTC can achieve unmatched separation and detection performance, delivering the highest quality data for ultimate confidence in our results. Analytical testing with HPLC ensures your product labels will match your product ingredients.
New! Water Activity (Aw) Testing
Water activity measures how much water is unbound and free to react with other substances. Aw testing provides a tool to justify the reduction of microbial testing of nonsterile drug and dietary supplement formulations. Knowing the Aw in manufacturing of personal care/cosmetics/OTC topicals/supplements can aid in stability control of a product.
State and federal law requires that certain products maintain strict tolerances in order to be in compliance. Out of compliance and your product needs to be destroyed.
Product Formulations
When COVID-19 hit the country, MTC became an essential business and part of the community response team. Due to the CDC’s recommendations surrounding hand hygiene as a means to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, hand sanitizers were in high demand and short supply.
Our clients came to us for our expertise in microbial testing, as well as research and development. MTC was able to quickly develop and troubleshoot formulations for hand sanitizers that met FDA and CDC guidelines. We also consulted on their production processes, providing suggestions on methods and techniques that would allow them to jumpstart their hand sanitizer production in a safe manner.
Of course, our clients come to us for our product formulation expertise beyond hand sanitizers. We have developed formulations for all manner of personal care products - lotions, shampoos, creams, and body sprays, to name a few.
We start with an understanding of your target market and an evaluation of raw materials trends to determine the basis for the formulation. We work closely with you on assessing and revising ingredients as we develop the final product. Most importantly, we will produce a pilot batch for samples or trade shows. And the good news is you own the new formula and the manufacturing process!
We also work with clients on re-formulations due to regulatory changes, or to simply refresh a legacy product.
Whether it's a new product or a revision to a legacy product, we can guide you through the formulation process...and the good news is that you own your formula!
Consulting
Most companies don't have the depth of knowledge to cover every product challenge they encounter. We have decades of experience and our solutions are designed with cGMP laboratory standards and regulatory limitations in mind.
When we see recurrent contamination issues with samples, we work closely with the client to identify potential areas of focus, usually arriving a solution fairly quickly, and at less cost because it is something we have already encountered at another facility.
There are times that a client needs an independent Manufacturing Audit either to investigate a problem, or as part of adherence to Good Manufacturing Practices. MTC is able to perform these audits with a trained team of manufacturing auditors.
Audits include testing of the environment and production surfaces, and an evaluation of the cGMP for each site to ensure that all standard practices are being followed. We highlight any problems we uncover and recommend corrective action.
MTC…Small lab service…big lab expertise.