Ethypharm collaborates to accelerate production of priority Covid-19 medicine

European-based pharmaceutical company Ethypharm is collaborating with Reading Scientific Services (RSSL) to accelerate the manufacture of fentanyl injection medicine; a priority medicine used whilst treating Covid-19.

The decision to fast-track the production of fentanyl comes after the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) requested an increase in the volume of priority medicines.

“We took the decision to dedicate production at our Romford facility to Covid-19 critical medicines for a three-week period - with one line used for fentanyl injection alone. We had outstanding commitment and performance from our staff on site, but we needed to be confident that these unprecedented quantities could be delivered to the front-line within the shortest time frame possible, without impacting patient safety.

“This was only achieved thanks to the exceptional support and professional approach of RSSL, who once again demonstrated why they remain one of our highly trusted partners,” explained Phil Parry, UK General Manager at Ethypharm. 

For the collaboration, RSSL reduced its usual six-to-eight week timeframe to just seven days, and provided rapid analytical and sterility test services. This response enabled Ethypharm to achieve a lead time of 28 days from manufacture to batch release - much faster than under normal operating conditions.

“Our ability to flex and adapt to our clients’ needs was central to this project’s success - as was the speed of our response. This meant redirecting resources across our seven day a week operation - but without compromising any of the stringent measures we have put in place to maintain a Covid-19 work-safe environment for our teams nor the quality of our scientific rigour,” said Jacinta George, managing director for RSSL.