IT group Cognizant to acquire life sciences manufacturing leader

IT services group Cognizant has agreed to acquire Zenith Technologies, a privately-held life sciences manufacturing technology services company headquartered in Cork, Ireland.

Zenith Technologies specialises in implementing digital technologies to manage, control and optimise drug and medical device production for maximum operational efficiency and regulatory compliance.

Brian Humphries, chief executive officer, Cognizant, said: "Industry 4.0 solutions, encompassing Internet of Things (IoT), automation and analytics, are a strategic focus area for Cognizant. In acquiring Zenith Technologies, we expand Cognizant's IoT portfolio and extend our life sciences domain expertise by becoming a single-source provider of end-to-end smart factory capabilities. Together, we are better positioned to help clients realise information and operational technology convergence in their manufacturing operations, and advance the development of life-saving drugs, biologics, specialised pharmaceuticals and medical devices. We look forward to welcoming Zenith Technologies' employees to Cognizant."

The acquisition extends Cognizant's capabilities for designing, implementing and managing end-to-end operational and information technology systems for connected biopharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers. Interconnected "smart factories" have become a strategic priority for the industry, with production systems and processes becoming more complex because of research advances and increased demand for large-molecule biologics. 

The combined Cognizant-Zenith Technologies expertise will deliver a range of Industry 4.0 capabilities, from factory design consultation, machine sensor and controller instrumentation, supervisory control, and data acquisition, to manufacturing execution systems, batch automation, enterprise resource planning integration and managed services. 

Joe Haugh, chief executive officer, Zenith Technologies, said: "In joining Cognizant, we are bringing together two respected life sciences service provider brands with complementary technology and manufacturing operations expertise. It's an exciting time for us, with the life sciences industry embracing digital transformation to enable more flexible and efficient manufacturing facilities to bring new treatments to market faster. Our combined business will drive process excellence through tighter integration of manufacturing processes and systems, the efficient harnessing of information and analytics across the manufacturing value chain, and the adoption of IoT technologies delivering manufacturing 4.0. Together, we are well-positioned to help clients more efficiently produce the life-changing medicines and medical devices for patients who need them most."  

The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2019, subject to satisfaction of closing conditions, including regulatory review. Financial details were not disclosed.