Colin White, general manager
Colin White, general manager, Penn Pharma, A PCI company, PCI talks to EPM about the company’s recent expansions and its core business strengths going forward.
EPM: PCI acquired both Penn Pharma and Biotech in 2014, what does this now mean to customers?
CW: We are committed to providing an unparalleled customer experience with our clinical and commercial services, and such services require world-class facilities. The innovation and vision of the PCI board has created an exceptional pharmaceutical outsourcing company, offering solutions that increase speed to market and deliver commercial success. Each of the three companies has specialist expertise providing bespoke and select services to their respective customer base. By combining the expertise and resources we are able to deliver a company with global reach, offering both general and where needed, specialist services in line with ever changing customer demand. The recent acquisitions bring PCI’s global footprint to 16 facilities across North America and Europe. PCI remains a forward thinking company and there is no reason to believe that it has any intention of slowing down. It’s fair to say that now is an exciting time for all.
EPM: Penn Pharma has a history of providing a full outsourcing service, but more recently invested in innovative manufacturing capabilities, can you tell us more?
CW: Under new management, Penn Pharma formulated a manufacturing strategy based on customer need. In 2013 Penn opened a purpose-built contained manufacturing facility in direct response to the significant growth in the number of highly potent molecules in development. These molecules require specialist handling and contained processing to protect both operators and the environment. Penn Pharma has led the market in contained manufacturing and in 2014 we were awarded ISPE Facility of the Year, Facility Integration for our new facility and will see us host an ISPE regional event in March 2015. Then, in 2014 and in line with the strategy, we completed a service expansion programme to offer large-scale manufacturing. This investment increased capacity for both current and future clients and improved our ability to service the growing market need for large-scale commercial outsourcing solutions. Most recently we have invested in roller compactor technology which will become operational in 2015. Roller compaction is a process that provides a granulation method for materials that are heat and moisture sensitive. It avoids the use of liquid and high temperatures associated with wet granulation and subsequent drying methods. Our decision to invest in this technology was again in direct response to customer demand.
EPM: PCI are seen as packaging experts, can you tell us more about this?
CW: In 2014, PCI completed the expansion of its packaging facilities in Rockford, IL, one of three locations in the United States. This Rockford location features nine PCI facilities totalling over a 1,000,000 square feet, supporting both commercial contract packaging services and clinical trial services, including packaging and labelling as well as global logistics services for investigational studies including storage, distribution, and management of returned drug product. The new 97,000 square foot site functions as PCI’s North American logistics centre and depot, offering extensive capacity for a variety of cold chain temperature ranges for global studies including controlled ambient, 2-8C, -20C, and -80C. In addition, the newly constructed site supports controlled substances II – V.
EPM: The original Biotec business has very specialist expertise in cold chain storage and distribution; can you tell us more about this?
CW: With innovative technology solutions, flexibility and a commitment to customer service, Biotec’s expertise supports global projects across a range of temperature conditions including controlled room temperature, 2 - 8°C, -20°C, -40°C, -80°C, and specialization in products requiring -196°C. A recent expansion quadrupled the capacity to store, package and ship cold chain products, and includes a second purpose built facility for the storage of Advanced Therapeutic Medicinal Products (ATMP) at -196°C. ATMPs include gene therapies, somatic cell therapies (stem cells) and tissue engineered products.
EPM: Finally, there was recent press activity relating to an exemplary safety record at the PCI Penn Pharma Tredegar site, can you elaborate on this?
CW: In January 2015, we achieved the milestone of being four years accident free which is something we are extremely proud of. This is even more remarkable given the backdrop of the building and expansion programmes all of which have been delivered within this four year timeframe. This achievement in safety does not just happen; we have created a safety focused culture by developing robust processes. These include a very effective ’near miss’ system as well as employing the principles of Lean Six Sigma. When we talk about safety within the business, there is a real sense of pride evident and it is the commitment of our staff that has led to this incredible achievement.