The LobsterPot – The Vape Escape Podcast Hosts Thompson Duke Industrial
Thompson Duke Industrial was featured on The LobsterPot podcast, hosted by Dave Barton and Jamie Bonthron, to discuss the rising popularity of cannabis oil vaporizer devices, plus the current obstacles within the industry and domestic and global markets. They began by covering Thompson Duke’s work in the development and manufacture of semi-automated and fully automated machinery for customers in the cannabis industry who want to create efficiencies in their manufacturing processes. Together, Hogan, our Managing Director, and Vlad Valme, our Director of Sales, scope out potential opportunities in the global market for these kinds of efficient, scalable solutions and share their thoughts about the future of the cannabis industry.
Hogan and Vlad cover our work in the vaping/cannabis oil industry and expertise in supporting companies at all stages of growth that want a clean and efficient manufacturing process. As vaping continues to be a top-tier category in the cannabis space with a steady growth trajectory, we keep a close eye on trends within the sector in order to stay a step ahead with innovative solutions.
During the discussion, Vlad gave a great overview of what can be found in vape cartridges, such as distillates, CBD isolate or a variety of other products. He mentions a few that are not ideal and generally frowned upon in the industry, leading into a discussion about lack of standards within the industry surrounding cartridges. While we are in favor of federal standards, Thompson Duke machines are flexible and agile enough to accommodate any device on the market. And there are a lot. The wide range of devices out there today are due in part to performance, including failure rates, customer experience, or as a way to differentiate branding from others on the dispensary floor.
The European market is much different, as standardization tends to be more strict and frequently practiced when compared to the United States and Canadian markets. Hogan gave insight to the hurdles of this region, using the German market as an example, which requires all devices (and their contents) be approved for medical/pharmaceutical use. Since no devices yet exist with this approval, any introductions must go through an approval process by the German government. He touches on our work in Europe with partners to help address issues like this, including identifying which products could potentially be approved in the German market. Hogan and Vlad believe that once Germany approves a device for medical usage, it will be able to trickle through the rest of the continent.
They also have a discussion about what may happen to the space if federal regulation comes into play. Currently, manufacturing standards are not as stringent as they would be with federal oversight, as each state currently addresses standardization differently. Recently, New York did bring in GMP fulfillment operations and manufacturing/processing. Our team is hopeful that this will set a standard across the country if federalization occurs. Currently in the United States there are only a handful of GMP facilities in current operation.
The United States industry still has a way to go as states continue to self regulate. However, the European market is starting out with a solid framework of rules and guidelines that will provide protections and avoid some of the mistakes that occurred domestically. Because Europe is just entering the playing field, this could provide the United States industry the opportunity to learn and implement similar rules.
To wrap up the podcast episode, Hogan and Vlad shared what they look forward to regarding the future of the cannabis industry. Hogan mentioned that “on the medicinal side, having formulations that are designed for specific ailments for people is a key thing. We have seen companies starting to formulate and process these. It is important to get medicine to the people. On the recreational side, vapes are very discreet, highly affordable, functional and, most importantly, effective. We’ll be seeing a huge explosion in this market in Europe in the upcoming years.” Vlad added that he’s looking forward to “rosin and live resin becoming the norm, which shows a lot of maturity in the industry and also shows that people are ready for the next level of understanding the plant. As well as reflecting on the industry in the United States and reflecting on the industry in Europe and being able to learn and grow together.”
To listen to the podcast episode, visit: https://bit.ly/3gjLq7C