There are four stages that are usually considered as being part of the product development cycle: Conception, design, realization, and service.
Most in the pharma community are on page with the last cycle, but many are not as up to speed with the other three. With the increasing demand for raw materials, chemicals, and intermediates to meet the needs of the drug manufacturers, all four stages need to be fully understood.
FormulationX, a new feature that debuted last month at INTERPHEX 2018, was developed to help fill that knowledge gap.
The new program brought together pharma thought leaders and suppliers for 14 no-cost technical sessions over the three days of INTERPHEX. The sessions aimed to bring companies and organizations focused on drug substance and pharma/bio companies together to network and exchange ideas.
In addition, exhibits by the companies featured new technology and innovation from all ends of the product development cycle.
The goal was to enable groups to make connections that will lead to increased understanding of formulation needs.
It’s estimated that the active pharmaceutical ingredient market will grow 6.3 percent by 2021. The excipient market is estimated to grow 7.2 percent in that period of time.
“FormulationX was designed to meet the needs of the North American market and drug substance industry professionals,” explained Melissa Ashley, senior vice president, INTERPHEX.
“Pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies around the world expect an increase in spend for raw materials, excipients, intermediates, fine chemicals, and API in the coming years due to the increasing demand for new drugs, innovation in excipients, and new technologies used in manufacturing,” Ashley added.
The main foundation sponsor, Elsevier, a global leader in science analytics, currently publishes more than 2,500 journals and 35,000 e-books, all of which aim to improve research, healthcare, and performance.
Another foundation sponsor was Colorcon, a provider of technologies and services for drug-dose design and development. A Colorcon goal was to encourage production of cost-effective pharmaceutical products within a reduced development time frame.
Their research is devoted to developing new drug coating systems, release technologies, and pharmaceutical excipients. The company also provides training and webinars on their research efforts.
A third sponsor, the Dow Chemical Company, is the second largest chemical manufacturer in the world. Its main products include performance plastics and chemicals.
A fourth sponsor was Azelis, a leader in global distribution of specialty chemicals.
Marcor served as the final sponsor. A subdivision of Azelis, it provides ingredients for health, pharmaceutical, and food outlets.
Dow’s Pharma Solutions division includes cutting-edge polymers and topical ingredients that maximize drug delivery, whether oral, transdermal, or topical. Another key focus is pharmaceutical excipients and active pharmaceutical ingredients.
“Increasing the presence of drug substance suppliers catering to the needs of targeted attendee groups (further strengthens) the value proposition of INTERPHEX offering an even more robust platform of formulation through commercialization technologies, products, and services,” Ashley said.
In previous INTERPHEX shows, 84 percent of attendees have found new drug ingredient suppliers and this year about 600 suppliers attended.
“Our Foundation Sponsor designation in support of INTERPHEX underscores our commitment to help the research community make discoveries, collaborate with industry colleagues, and share insight, expanding the boundaries of knowledge and intelligence for the benefit of humanity,” said Tim Hoctor, vice president of professional services, Elsevier.
“We believe personalized technology is helping researchers accelerate their research and make unanticipated connections, which is particularly important as the body of knowledge and data continues to grow rapidly,” Hoctor added. “INTERPHEX provides the ideal platform for these connections to happen via a strong technical learning program.”
Plans already are underway for INTERPHEX 2019, which is scheduled for April 2-4, 2019, at the Javits Center in New York City.
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This is an edited and updated version of an article that appeared in the INTERPHEX 2018 Show Daily: Wednesday, April 18.
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