inVentiv to buy i3 & Campbell Alliance

inVentiv Health is to acquire i3 and Campbell Alliance and realign into three operating units: clinical, consulting and commercial.

Since being acquired by Thomas H Lee Partners in August inVentiv has launched takeovers of Star Terre Sante, i3 and Campbell Alliance. Completion of these acquisitions will lead to inVentiv realigning into three operating units, with the clinical segment taking the i3 brand name.

Operating under the i3 brand, the combined organisation will be one of the top-tier CROs (contract research organisations) in the world with locations across North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Asia Pacific”, said inVentiv.

The clinical unit will consist of i3, which includes Research, Pharma, Resourcing and Statprobe businesses, and existing inVentiv segments, such as MedFocus, Clinical Solutions and Smith Hanley. Glenn Bilawsky will remain as CEO of i3.

Following completion of the i3 sale, which is valued at approximately $400m (€290m), Ingenix, the current owner, will align its commercialisation, safety, regulatory and late phase services under a newly-launched Life Sciences division.

Campbell Alliance

A day after news of the i3 deal inVentiv published details a definitive agreement to acquire Campbell Alliance, a biopharm management consultancy. Campbell Alliance will operate independently as the consulting unit of inVentiv.

The third segment, commercial, will consist of the remaining elements of the legacy inVentiv organisation, namely communications, selling solutions and accelerators and patient outcomes. Commercial will be the largest unit with approximately $900m in annual revenues.

inVentiv expects to close both deals in the first half of 2011 and has financed the takeovers through a combination of debt and equity.

New CEO

Paul Meister, executive chairman of inVentiv, has been made CEO of the company. Meister is founder and CEO of Liberty Lane Partners, a private equity firm involved in the August 2010 takeover of inVentiv.

From 1991 to 2006 Meister was an executive officer at Fisher Scientific.