A brand new chemical genomics facility, one of the first academic
small molecule screening facilities in Europe, has been opened by
the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) and the German
Cancer Research Centre (DKFZ) in Heidelberg,...
Fisher Scientific and Apogent Technologies are to merge in a $3.7
billion (€3.01bn) deal that will double Fisher's footprint in the
high-growth life sciences equipment market, reports Phil
Taylor.
Compared with European and US chemical companies, most domestic
Chinese chemical enterprises have remained technologically
challenged with productivity lagging behind international levels.
The US Food and Drug Administration is to develop a blueprint for
speeding up the approval of new medical products to counteract the
slowdown in R&D productivity in the pharmaceutical industry,
writes Phil Taylor.
Germany chemical and pharmaceutical company Bayer has christened
its chemicals spin-off Lanxess, and says it is on schedule for a
stock market flotation early next year.
German chemicals giant BASF has beaten its own sales and earnings
forecasts for 2003, prompting chairman Jurgen Hambrecht to suggest
that the sector may be due for something of a recovery this year,
writes Phil Taylor.
Switzerland's Novartis has confirmed that it is in discussions with
Aventis which could lead to a counter-offer to fend off the hostile
takeover bid from France's Sanofi-Synthelabo.
The need to conform with new European Commission (EC) regulations
and the increasing demand for improved efficiency in process
industries are encouraging greater adoption of flowmeters.
New active ingredients are the lifeblood of the pharmaceutical
industry, but with the number of new compounds being launched
tailing off almost yearly, companies are turning to inactive
excipients as a source of product innovation,...
Switzerland's Tecan saw its sales last year fall 6 per cent as
turnover growth in its genomics/proteomics division failed to
counterbalance declines in drug discovery and diagnostics.
Biotechnology company Crucell has acquired fellow Netherlands-based
ChromaGenics in a move to get hold of a promising new technology
that could boost yields of proteins and antibodies made in cell
culture, writes Phil Taylor.
Pharmaceutical companies must start exploring ways of extending
patents on their products early in their lifecycle, such as
developing improved formulations of the active ingredient, even
before they are launched onto the market.
A fall in demand from the pharmaceuticals industry has caused a
significant hole in 2003 profits for German chemicals group
Degussa, which implemented heavy restructuring to reduce production
capacity in its fine chemicals unit.
German processing technology group GEA has announced new
acquisitions that will increase its offering to the food and pharma
industries, part of a new strategy to expand the business under
parent company mg technologies.
Germany's Haupt Pharma and Wulfing Holding have joined forces to
create a new company specialising in the contract manufacturing of
highly active pharmaceutical products.
The Chinese pharmaceutical industry is still showing above average
growth, but the country's entry into the World Trade Organisation
means that tough times are ahead for manufacturers of active
pharmaceutical ingredients - which...
Filtration specialist Pall has seen its second quarter sales and
earnings held back by weak demand in the biopharmaceuticals
industry, particularly in Europe.
Human machine interface (HMI) technology is a growing sector in
European industrial plants, according to Frost and Sullivan, as
sectors such as the pharmaceutical industry try to reduce the
number of operators per machine.
Two France-based companies have pooled their resources to set up a
new venture specialising in the contract development and
manufacturing of biologicals drugs.
A reluctance by pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to
invest in drug discovery technologies has been holding back the
market for combinatorial chemistry, but this is expected to change
over the next few years, according to...
Around 80 workers from Merck KGaA's French site at Lacassagne in
Lyon have taken part in a protest at the company's headquarters in
Darmstadt, Germany, against the planned closure of the unit.
The merger between Yamanouchi and Fujisawa is the first step
towards creating a global mega-player, but additional tie-ups will
be required if the new entity is to join the top tier of
multinational pharmaceutical companies.
Diversa has entered into a deal aimed at boosting its manufacturing
capacity in enzymes used for industrial processes, including the
production of pharmaceuticals. The agreement with Mexico's Fermic
is designed to step up the...
Boehringer Ingelheim has won a contract to develop a
commercial-scale manufacturing process for a new prostate cancer
drug in development at fellow German company Micromet.
A new study has provided a 'cautiously optimistic' estimate of
spending on drug discovery and other areas of R&D over the next
couple of years, which will be music to the ears of technology
companies hit by a reluctance...
Predictions that 2004 could see another wave of consolidation in
the pharmaceutical industry were lent further weight yesterday by
the announcement that Japanese drug majors Yamanouchi and Fujisawa
intend to merge in a $7.7 billion...
Dutch chemical company Akzo Nobel followed through on its plans to
cut costs at its pressured Diosynth subsidiary by slashing staff at
the unit, which has been hit by a deteriorating market for its
manufacturing services in both chemical...
Lonza has signed two new agreements for the supply of monoclonal
antibody-based drugs that provide an early fillip for its contract
manufacturing business, which was adversely affected by
overcapacity in 2003.
Cardinal Health has said that it will not be proceeding with a $100
million (€78m) information technology and manufacturing facility in
Longford, Ireland.
Israel's Teva Pharmaceutical Industries has reported strong
increases in sales across its branded, generic and active
pharmaceutical ingredient (API) operations in the fourth quarter of
2003, as net income rose by more than a...
In its last set of annual results before being acquired by General
Electric, Amersham of the UK reported lower profits last year as
currency effects bit into the company's bottom line, but saw its
drug discovery unit move into...
DSM will cut around 500 jobs at its Chemelot site in Geleen, the
Netherlands over the next two years, in an effort to cut costs by
over €50 million per annum. The jobs will largely go in support
services and manufacturing staff departments.
Mark McClellan, considered the most industry-friendly Commissioner
that the US Food and Drug Administration has had in years, could be
leaving his position before the end of the month, according to
industry speculation.
Troubled chemicals company Rhodia has pressed ahead with plans to
sell off its food ingredients portfolio, allowing it to focus on
its core chemicals and pharmaceuticals businesses.
Germany's KGaA has announced plans to sell off its laboratory
distribution business VWR International and operate as a smaller,
higher-margin business focused on pharmaceuticals, chemicals and
liquid crystals.
Earlier this week, the US Food and Drug Administration suspended
the approval of a generic version of Pfizer's high blood pressure
drug Norvasc (amlodipine besylate) developed by India's Dr Reddy's
Laboratories. The...
Fisher Scientific International has swooped on two companies
providing tools for life sciences companies in a move designed to
boost its product range for research laboratories and
biopharmaceutical production.
Sir Tom McKillop, chief executive of AstraZeneca, has delivered a
stinging attack on parallel trade in pharmaceuticals as a factor
that is contributing to the ground lost by European pharmaceutical
companies to their US peers over...
DSM of the Netherlands saw its operating profit slump 23 per cent
to €294 million last year, hit by higher raw material costs and
declining sales of its life sciences products.
Swiss-American laboratory instrument company Mettler-Toledo saw its
fourth-quarter revenues climb 7 per cent to $370 million (€290m)
although the weak dollar accounted for a large proportion of the
increase.
Shares in Cobra Biomanufacturing of the UK fell 30 per cent
yesterday after the contract manufacturer of proteins, DNA and
viruses gave a warning on profits.
A US programme aimed at shortening the development time for new
pharmaceutical and biological drugs - which involves close
collaboration between the Food and Drug Administration and the
developer - is now underway.
The cost of implementing the US Medicare Act - which for the first
time provides a prescription drug benefit for the elderly and
disabled - is rising fast and represents a 'cave-in' to the drug
industry by the US government.
Fisher Scientific, the US-based science and laboratory products
group, hinted earlier this week that it may be looking to make
another acquisition, despite its prediction of a period of
consolidation in the wake of its $714 million...
LION bioscience has delayed the publication of its third-quarter
results after a change in its accounting procedures that will see
licence revenues spread across the term of the contracts, instead
of booked in the quarter they are...
Novartis' generic drugs subsidiary Sandoz has opened two new
manufacturing plants in Austria and Slovenia that mark its entry
into the contract manufacture of biopharmaceuticals using mammalian
cell culture.
Tablet-coating specialist BioProgress formalised its agreement with
US chemicals and machinery group FMC in deal that could be worth up
to $160 million (€128m) in revenues in the first six years.
Pharmaceutical, chemical and coatings company Akzo Nobel reported a
9 per cent slide in net income in 2003 but said the result was
better than expected given the difficult operating environment last
year.