Campbell Research Center Creates Hand Sanitizer To Defend Against COVID-19

With the COVID-19 pandemic impacting supplies of items, the Campbell University Pharmaceutical Education & Research Center (PERC) team took action to make a batch of hand sanitizer.

“Our team felt called to use our manufacturing capabilities at PERC to help combat COVID-19,” said Dr. Mali Gupta, director of PERC. “We immediately ordered supplies, which were hard to find considering the circumstances and prepared to jump to action as soon as ingredients and bottles arrived.”

The PERC crew was able to make 300 four-ounce bottles of FDA-approved hand sanitizer. Dr. David Eagerton, executive director of PERC and chair of the pharmaceutical sciences department, began distributing bottles to clinical faculty who are working on the front-lines of healthcare.

“Our colleagues are battling this pandemic and need all the help they can get,” Eagerton said.“We are very proud to provide this defensive tool to help stop the spread of the virus.”

Team members hope to make more hand sanitizer to distribute more broadly around campus and to area first-responders and healthcare professionals, but timing of that is dependent on availability of materials.

“We wish we had an unlimited amount of ingredients and materials to make huge quantities of the hand sanitizer, but we’ll do what we can with our current resources,” said Gupta.

Eagerton continued, “I am very thankful to the group who pulled together to make this happen, especially Scott Staton, who is the manager of formulation and operations at PERC. Through their spirit and ingenuity, we hope lives will be saved.”

About PERC

The Pharmaceutical Education & Research Center (PERC) is an FDA registered Pharmaceutical Contract Organization (PCO) equipped with current technology and expert staff who serve clients from around the world, including:

  • Pharma Industries
  • Pharmacies
  • Government Agencies
  • Universities

PERC also provides Campbell University students majoring in Pharmaceutical Sciences an extensive hands-on, laboratory-based education with a graduate-level innovative and challenging research experience utilizing state-of-the-art manufacturing equipment and analytical instrumentation. This applied knowledge prepares the students as a well-trained future workforce for the pharmaceutical industry.

PERC’s experienced faculty and staff offer a variety of high-quality and timely services focused on pre-formulation, preclinical analytical research, and small-scale manufacturing. PERC recognizes and commits to on-time project delivery with the highest quality.