As drug companies strive to get their products faster into the market, contract research organizations (CROs) are positioning themselves by promising quicker and cheaper development.
The new company, Xcelience, promises a broad spectrum of formulation services across all dosage forms, from solids, liquids and capsules to gels and ointments.
"It's a completely positive move, taking all the best attributes from the larger company, and utilising the same proven experts, to enhance the common standards of formulation development today," Xcelience president Derek Hennecke told In-PharmaTechnologist.com.
"Time to get to the clinic is very important but not at the expense of doing the right work, so Xcelience's highly experienced staff have found the balance - we manufacture on time and a low cost, but don't ever compromise the quality."
The company claims it is the only CRO in North America with the technology to get APIs directly into capsules, allowing many cases to get to the clinic faster.
Depending on the API, this technology can bypass much formulation work since it removes the need for excipients that are normally required for filling purposes and associated stability studies, helping to shorten the drug development process.
While this advanced technology is well established in large pharmaceutical companies in North America and Europe, Xcelience, according to Hennecke, is the only CRO helping smaller clients with such high-tech capabilities.
Apart from the laboratory, which has been around since 1997, the company has inherited the branch's core central researchers, developers and project managers.
By focusing solely on the preformulation, formulation, analytical and manufacturing fields, Xcelience now believes it has the edge in what is widely seen as a saturated market.