PharmaSource Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

“What’s in it for the CDMO? That’s the crucial question. We’re not buying a service; we’re establishing a partnership. There has to be interest for both partners.” says Eduardo da Fonseca.

Eduardo da Fonseca, Head of Supply Chain at Bioeq, brings over five years of experience in building a virtual manufacturing operation from scratch. With a background in global companies like Nestlé, Roche, and Acino, Eduardo now leads Bioeq’s innovative approach to supply chain management.

Bioeq is a new Biosimilars company with a clear vision focused on launching specific products in key markets, utilising an out-licensing strategy for commercial distribution and an outsourcing strategy for manufacturing and supply.

In the latest PharmaSource podcast episode, Eduardo explains how he’s built up their value chain from raw materials to delivery of finished products, building a network of external partners and internal teams, to get them to where they are now.

Read the full interview on PharmaSource

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“Sustainability is not just a trend; it’s integral to our DNA,” says Teva’s Global Head of Sustainability

Amalia Adler-Waxman, SVP, Global Head of Sustainability and ESG and head of Corporate Affairs of International Markets at Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries, brings a wealth of experience from her roles in government, international affairs organisations, and the pharmaceutical industry. Her unique perspective bridges the gap between public and private sectors, offering invaluable insights into the evolving landscape of corporate sustainability.

Amalia Adler-Waxman’s journey with Teva began in 2016 as a consultant. Since then, she has led the company’s transformation into one of the ‘World’s Most Sustainable Companies’, as recognised by Time magazine.

In the latest PharmaSource podcast episode, Amalia explains how Teva’s commitment to sustainability has become a key strategy for driving positive impact and improving business performance.

UniD Manufacturing are the first global Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) fully dedicated to micro-implants based on sustained release and polymeric formulations.

2024 is an important year for UniD Manufacturing, their first as a CDMO open to external customers, with new projects expected to be launched by the year’s end.

Ahead of CDMO Live 2024, Chief Operational Officer Pascal Bertholet shares the company’s innovative strides in micro-implant technology and their vision for a sustainable future.

“2024 marks a significant year for us as we undergo a substantial shift in our business approach.” says Pascal. The company was originally established to develop ocular implants for sister company, EyeD Pharma, but has recently expanded to offer small implants in other therapeutic areas.

“What sets us apart is our expertise in developing both the formulation and the manufacturing process for micro-implants that release active ingredients according to a specific dissolution profile. This can range from a few hours to several years. Our formulations include biodegradable, non-biodegradable, and resorbable polymers,” explains Pascal.

Read the full article on PharmaSource

Prasfarma is a company full of experts in the manufacturing of cytostatic and highly potent products (HPAPI), with a focus on oncology.   

Ahead of CDMO Live we spoke to Diana Alarcón, Business Development Manager at Prasfarma to understand more about the services they offer by the Barcelona-based Contract Development & Manufacturing organisation, and how they have become Annex-1 ready . 

“Prasfarma has made significant investments adapting their facilities and machinery to Annex 1 requirements for the manufacturing of sterile projects. We have expanded our facilities and increased both production and analytical departments.”

Prasfarma has a reputation for working under an agile strategy. We consider our clients as our partners.

“One of our main value is our flexibility. We work on tailor-made projects and we adapted to our customer’s needs” says Diana. 

Read about their upcoming roundtable on Annex 1 here

Vitema is a fast-growing Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) based in Sibiu, Romania.

With one of the largest GMP-certified pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities in Europe, new management team and assets worth over €100 million, they have ambitious goals.

Ahead of CDMO Live we spoke to Diana Serban, the Head of Commercial and Business Development at Vitema.

Diana describes the company as “More than just a CDMO: we are a robust ecosystem that supports the entire pharmaceutical development lifecycle.” This includes everything from the research and development of medicines and food supplements to full-scale production. Vitema also boasts specialised capabilities for oncology products and clinical trials.

Vitema has more than 20 years experience in the pharmaceuticals market, and prides itself on its ability to assist pharmaceutical, biotech, and healthcare companies in delivering high-quality medicines and food supplements to their customers. They offer integrated services, full transparency throughout the entire manufacturing process, and highly competitive pricing data.

Read the full article

Aizon is on a mission to integrate modern computing into the complex arena of GMP manufacturing processes in life sciences.

In the latest episode of the PharmaSource podcast we sat down with Claus Abildgren, Chief Revenue Officer at Aizon, and David O’Gara, Strategic Advisor to Aizon to understand how artificial intelligence can make an impact on manufacturing in the highly-regulated industry.

“Our goal is to evolve the industry by taking pragmatic steps towards enhancing manufacturing performance through practical applications.” says Claus. “We aim to optimize the current capacity of manufacturers and utilize artificial intelligence to anticipate and mitigate the risk of adverse events with predictive capabilities.”

When producing drug products under stringent GMP conditions, “ensuring quality is fundamental. This includes securing data integrity and maintaining comprehensive audit trails—key aspects of deploying technology in a highly regulated environment.”

Leveraging the data generated at a plant leads to identifying opportunities for yield improvements, thereby ensuring high-quality production, delivered on time and at reasonable costs. says David.

“Automated quality reports can significantly reduce the workload for quality organizations and production plant chemists.”

Deploying this technology, especially at CDMOs and for their sponsors, can yield substantial returns, particularly with high-value molecules where even a 1% improvement can have a remarkable impact on return on investment.

Read the full article

“The biggest challenge for scientists to understand that it’s not just your expertise that people are buying, it’s your ability to connect with their problem.” 

Dr. Jeff Kiplinger, a former scientific leader at Pfizer, founded, scaled and sold Averica Discovery Services, a Boston-based CRO specializing in early-stage contract research and analytical development.

Now best-selling of author “Expert to Entrepreneur” and consultant, his company Selling Science advises contract service providers on how to improve their science selling techniques.

Ahead of his lighting talk at CDMO Live, we sat down with Jeff to discuss how CROs and CMOs can position themselves for success in today’s crowded marketplace, and advice for outsourcing leaders in selecting the right partner for their business.

Pfizer CentreOne is an “altogether different kind of CDMO”. Unlike a pure play contract development and manufacturing partner, they don’t own their own plants and pharmaceutical development centres. Instead their customers can leverage the wealth of expertise and state-of-the-art facilities Pfizer possesses.

Ahead of CDMO Live 2024 we sat down with Tom Wilson, VP of Global Contract Manufacturing at Pfizer CentreOne, to discuss how their integrated business model sets them apart from other contract manufacturing partners.

Pfizer CentreOne offers a comprehensive range of services including small molecule API, solid oral dose, sterile injectables, biologics, and cell & gene therapies.

“Pfizer spends over a billion dollars every year to maintain our global network of 38 plants.” says Tom.

“When we bring a client partner on board, they get access to the same manufacturing work centres, scientists, and analysts that Pfizer uses for its products. We have robust ways of controlling intellectual property, ensuring we’re protecting our clients and our own IP.”

“Pfizer’s main mission statement is ‘time is life’. We bring that patient centricity to our CDMO practice. Clients are usually surprised that we’re not talking immediately about our technology, but instead about their patient’s journey, then how can we help make a difference.”

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“Good quality supplier data is the backbone of procurement,” says Lana Radosevic,  Global Supplier Lead in Procurement Excellence at Astellas

In her role in Procurement Excellence, Lana Radosevic’s primary focus is on improving supplier data quality across all SaaS systems used by Global Procurement and integrating supplier data. 

In the latest episode of the PharmaSource podcast she explains the importance of accurate supplier data and  shares her experience in driving improvements.

Read the full article on PharmaSource

Terumo is a mid to large size-global medical device company based in Japan, with offices in over 160 countries around the world and over 50,000 products and services.

The Terumo Pharmaceutical Solutions Division, also known as ‘PSD’, is a leading manufacturer of injectable solutions – including primary container, infusion therapy devices, general drug delivery devices – and contract development manufacturing (CDMO) services for parenteral drugs.

“2024 so far has been very good for us.” says Marco Chiadò Piat, President of Terumo Pharmaceutical Solutions Division.

“We’re seeing continuous growth this year, as we did in 2023 and 2022. Continuous growth in capabilities, the solutions we provide to our pharmaceutical customers, and hence a continued increase of the positive impact that we have on patients worldwide.”

Ahead of CDMO Live, we sat down with Marco and Anil Busimi, Vice President Strategy & Marketing at Terumo Pharmaceutical Solutions Division, to discuss the integrated CDMO services that Terumo offer to their growing, international customer base

Read the full article