University of Wisconsin–Madison

Fundamentals of Solid Dosage Form Development

Developed & Conducted by the Division of Pharmacy Professional Development, School of Pharmacy, University of Wisconsin-Madison.

a graduated flask and cylindrical flask for solid dosage forms

Solid dosage forms are the most common commercial drug delivery system in use today.  This short course covers the “a to z” of solid dosage form design and development, from pre-clinical excipient selection to commercial manufacturing. 
Concepts covered in this course include:

  • Patient-centric drug product design
  • Development of a target product profile (QTPP)
  • Importance of physicochemical properties of drug molecules
  • Basics of biopharmaceutics and gastrointestinal physiology
  • Solid-state properties of salts, co-crystals, polymorphs & hydrates
  • Challenges associated with low/high doses & low solubility
  • Amorphous solid dispersions
  • Controlled release platform technologies
  • Excipient selection for immediate and controlled release dosage forms
  • Common manufacturing processes (such as blending, granulation tableting, film coating, encapsulation)
  • Continuous vs batch manufacturing
  • Drug product manufacturing process optimization & troubleshooting
  • Quality-by-Design principles
  • Solid state stability testing
  • Regulatory guidelines for solid dosage forms

Course participants will be provided with up-to-date research-based information taught by industry leaders with over 100-years of collective experience.  They will learn this material through lectures, classroom discussions (with opportunities for information sharing), and case-studies based on real-life examples.

This course is part of the Drug Product Development Certificate. It fulfills one elective. Take the course ‘as-is’ or as part of the certificate.

Developed & Conducted by the Division of Pharmacy Professional Development, School of Pharmacy, University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Registration Information

Register

Refund Policy

Course date:Jun 2, 2025 - Jun 5, 2025
Location:

Pyle Center
University of Wisconsin-Madison Campus
702 Langdon Street
Room 227
Madison, WI

Course fee:

$2300 (please contact us for group rates)

$1150 Academic and non-profit (contact us for registration code)
$575 Graduate student (contact us for registration code)

Tuition includes a reception on Monday evening and lunch on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

Refund Policy: All requests for refunds, less a $75 administrative fee, will be honored if received prior to May 19, 2025. No refunds will be provided after that date.

Course Objectives

This short course provides the learner with current, research-based information covering (but not limited to) crystalline and amorphous properties of molecular solids, fundamental properties of powders, and the relationships between solubility, permeability, partitioning, diffusion rates of dissolution and release mechanisms. 

Upon completion of this course, the learner should be able to:

  1. Understand the most important physicochemical and solid-state properties of drug substances in the context of solid dosage form design;

  2. Describe the relationships between solubility, permeability, dissolution, and release mechanisms, and the biopharmaceutical and clinical performance of solid dosage forms;

  3. Select the best excipients for use in immediate and controlled release tablets and capsules;

  4. Relate fundamental properties of powders (such as particle size morphology, flow, compaction, and hygroscopicity) to solid dosage form design, manufacturing, and performance;

  5. Articulate the principles underlying solid-state instability at elevated temperature and relative humidity conditions;

  6. Discuss regulatory principles (such as Quality by Design) and refer to current international regulatory guidelines.

Who Should Attend

Scientists who are working on the design, development or manufacture of solid dosage forms for small molecule drugs in all stages of development.  Also, individuals who wish to expand their general understanding of solid dosage forms, how they are made, and associated regulatory aspects should take this course.

Course Outline

Monday, June 2, 2025

8:30 am

Welcome
Eric Buxton, PhD
Clinical Professor, Department Chair, School of Pharmacy, University of Wisconsin-Madison

8:35 pm

Speaker: Sheri Shamblin, PhD, President, Aleurites, LLC

Introduction

  • Oral drug delivery overview
  • Importance of the patient
  • Tablets and capsules overview
  • Stability-manufacturability-bioperformance triangle
  • Introduction to Quality-by-design (QbD)
  • QTTP

21st Century Oral Drug Delivery (SLS)

  • Challenges/benefits associated with oral delivery (taste masking, rapid-onset, colonic delivery, food effect, light protection, etc)
  • Target patient populations (pediatrics, geriatrics, oncology, etc)
  • Tablets vs capsules (types and pros/cons of each)
  • The critical role of excipients
  • Quality Target Product Profile (QTPP)

10:00 am

Break

10:15 am

Speaker: Paul Luner, PhD, Principal Consultant, Triform Sciences,  LLC

Basic Biopharmaceutics

  • GI physiology and physiologic variables
  • Dissolution, solubility and permeability
  • ADME
  • Pharmacokinetics and bioavailability
  • Formulation objectives

12:00 pm

Lunch

1:00 pm

Speaker: Paul Luner, PhD 

General Pharmaceutics

  • What makes a good drug molecule?
  • Rule of 5 (Ro5) and “Drugability”
  • Physicochemical categories of small drug molecules
  • Neutral, acids, bases, zwitterions
  • pH-solubility profile for acids & bases
  • Maximum Absorbable Dose (MAD) (single compartment)
  • Biopharmaceutics Classification System (BCS/DCS)
  • Factors affecting drug absorption from the gastrointestinal (GI) tract

2:30 pm

Break

2:45 pm

Speaker: Paul Luner, PhD

Solid State Phenomena (Part 1)

  • Solids, their properties, impact and measurement/characterization
  • Thermal properties
  • Particulate properties
  • Morphology
  • Particle size
  • Surface area
  • Density
  • Solution state
  • Solid state
  • Preformulation

4:30 pm

Adjourn and Reception at the Wisconsin Union Terrace

Tuesday, June 3, 2025

8:30 am

Speakers: Paul Luner, PhD and Sheri Shamblin, PhD

Solid State Phenomena (Part 2)

  • Overview of crystalline forms
  • Thermodynamics of Solid Forms
  • Polymorphs, hydrates and solvates
  • Amorphous solids
  • Solid form selection
  • Why form matters in pharmaceutical development

10:00 am

Break

10:15 am

Speaker: Paul Luner, PhD 

Solid State Part (Part 3)

  • Solid form phase transformations
  •  Solid phase purity of drug substances
  • Disproportionation in salts and co-crystals

12:00 pm

Lunch

1:00 pm

Speaker: Bruno Hancock, PhD, Vice-President, Aleurites, LLC

Drug Product Design (Basics)

  • General principles - bulk & deformation props of powders
  • Importance of powder flow & compact mechanical properties
  • Excipients & their uses & functionality
  • Excipient selection
  • Regulatory guidelines
4:30 pm

Adjourn

 

Evening free to explore Madison

Wednesday, June 4, 2025

8:30 am

Speaker: Bruno Hancock, PhD

DP Design (Intermediate)

  • Process design & selection
  • Continuous vs batch processes
  • Review of common DP unit operations(dispensing, blending, granulation, milling, tableting, encapsulation, film coating, etc)
  • Process optimization 
  • Processing modeling basics
  • In-process controls
  • What can go wrong during manufacturing...

12:00

Lunch

1:00 pm

Speaker: Sheri Shamblin, PhD

DP Design (Advanced)

  • Low & high drug loading challenges
  • Formulation solutions for low solubility APIs
  • Modified release approaches (with examples)
  • Prodrugs & drug product intermediates
4:30 pm

Adjourn

 

Evening free to explore Madison

Thursday, June 5, 2025

8:30 am

Speakers: Bruno Hancock, Paul Luner, PhD  and PhD, Sheri Shamblin, PhD

Bringing it all together

  • Hot topics in the industry
  • Participant's requested topics
  • Case studies from word of consulting (blinded)
  • Quizzes from the faculty
  • Open Q&A
  • Wrap up
11:30 am Course adjourned

Instructors

Bruno Hancock, PhD
Vice President
Aleurites LLC
Westerly, RI

Paul Luner, PhD
Principal Consultant
Triform Sciences,  LLC
Waterford, CT

Sheri Shamblin, PhD
President
Aleurites, LLC
Westerly, RI

Accommodations

Accommodations are the responsibility of the registrant.

The Graduate (1 block from the course site)
601 Langdon Street
Madison, WI  5373
608.257.4391
Price: $169.00
Arrival/Departure Dates:  6/1/25 – 6/5/25
Room release: 5/19/2025
Booking link

Program Coordinator

Eric Buxton, PhD

Division of Pharmacy Professional Development
777 Highland Avenue
Madison, WI 53705
(608) 262-2431 FAX
(608) 265-2259
eric.buxton@wisc.edu

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