PS International is proud of its FDA- approved manufacturing plant. Numerous steps are taken to ensure that our products are manufactured under the guidelines set by FDA with the highest quality ingredients available.

Recently we have purchased state of the art analytical equipment and increased our highly competent staff in the quality control and quality assurance departments. PS International, makes quality the most important ingredient in any product we produce.

In our laboratory you will find samples of raw materials from Indena, Ashland Chemicals, Interhealth, Takeda USA, Henkel Vitamins and Optipure. These samples along with other raw materials are removed from their containers and sent to the lab for analysis before they can be released for processing. Let's take a short walk through our laboratory and see how products are checked for purity and potency.

Infrared Spectrophotometry: An Infrared Spectrophotometer (IR) is used to identify raw material components before they are weighed out for further processing. This computer-aided instrument uses techniques that measure the absorption of infrared light by a sample, which is then compared to a library of known compounds. If an incoming raw material matches its proper "scan", then the sample is released for further evaluation. If it does not match, or has an unknown contaminant, the entire lot is rejected.

Microbiological Testing: In our temperature controlled Incubator you will find materials that are being tested for purity using microbiological procedures that check for E. coli, Coliforms, Total Plate Counts, Yeast and Mold, and even Salmonella.

Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC): On the other side of the lab, botanicals are being "fingerprinted" using a procedure called Thin-Layer Chromatography or TLC. This technique separates out plant constituents using silica plates that are placed in a solvent. As the sample is carried up the plate by the solvent, the components separate and form a unique pattern on the plate. TLC's are fast becoming one of the best techniques for identifying plants such as Echinacea and Golden Seal. Our methods follow those of the German and British Herbal Pharmacopoeias and other reputable sources.

High Performance Liquid Chromatography: An HPLC sits on the corner lab bench and is short for High Performance Liquid Chromatography. This instrument is used to quantify levels of vitamins and herbal components using a technique that separates out compounds in a column and then detects their concentrations using special types of spectrophotometers. For instance, a complete B multiple can be analyzed to insure that the stated milligram or microgram quantities of Vitamins B-1 or B-2 are met.

UV-VIS Spectrophotometer: Another instrument that we have recently added to the lab is a new computer-aided UV-Vis Spectrophotometer that measures ultraviolet and visible light absorption by a sample. Currently this instrument is being used to test extracts such as St. John's Wort for total Hypercin content and Bilberry for its anthocyanidin level. These herbs cannot be released to our manufacturing area without these important tests that ensure quality and potency.