PARSIPPANY, N.J., Oct. 8, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- DSM
Pharmaceutical Products, the custom manufacturing and technology
business of Royal DSM (NYSE, Euronext: DSM KON), announced today
that it has signed a collaboration agreement with the Almac Group
Ltd. (UK) in the field of biocatalysis to provide sustainable
manufacturing services to the pharmaceutical industry.
The agreement grants both parties access to their enzyme
platform technologies, services and expertise for the manufacturing
of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). Almac's expertise in
rapid enzyme identification, scale-up and implementation into early
phase projects complements DSM's experience and track record of
over 30 commercial manufacturing bioprocesses run on a multi-ton
scale. This will give customers of either party access to
enzyme expertise and assets resulting in cost-effective, green
processing at all phases of development from preclinical to
commercial manufacturing scale. This collaboration will also enable
Almac to offer its customers a preferred partner for large-scale
production.
Alexander Wessels, CEO of DSM
Pharmaceutical Products, stated, "Working with the Almac Group
marks further advancement of DSM's stated strategy towards
strategic partnerships to excel in providing new customer
solutions. DSM is a global leader in applied biocatalysis,
providing high quality custom manufacturing and development
services to the pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical industries.
Via this agreement, we maintain our commitment to the future of
pharma manufacturing, adding to our green chemistry toolbox, which
also includes complex chemical solutions and more efficient
manufacturing with micro reactors, where DSM is unique in
its pilot to commercial scale up offering."
Dr. Tom Moody, Head of Almac
Biocatalysis, stated, "This collaboration has come at the right
time as more and more customers need scalable green technologies to
access difficult-to-make chiral chemicals. Having access to
the right enzymes today will drive 'hit to process'. The
introduction of enzymes into processes earlier in the drug
discovery pipeline will therefore help to drive cost down as the
projects move forward." Dr. Stephen
Barr, Managing Director of Almac's Sciences business unit,
added, "The synergies between Almac and DSM are not superseded
today by any other collaboration in this area. Our customers
will see real rewards from the fact that any bioprocess developed
can go from conception to manufacture quickly within this
agreement."
Daniel Mink PhD, Corporate Scientist Biocatalysis and
(Bio)-Organic Chemistry at DSM comments:
"One important success factor for implementing enzymatic routes
is access to a diverse range of biocatalysts. DSM is continuously
expanding its unique enzyme collection of more than 3,000 enzymes
through in-house development as well as innovative partnering
models. The collaboration with Almac completes the latest phase in
this process. Together we will be able to offer a complete package
serving the pharmaceutical industry at all stages of development
from preclinical to commercial scale -- bringing biocatalysis to
the next level."
About the Almac Group
The Almac Group provides a broad range of services from
R&D, biomarker discovery and development, API manufacture,
formulation development, clinical trial supply and IXRS®
technology (IVRS/IWRS), to commercial-scale manufacture. Almac
provides services to more than 600 companies, including all the
world leaders in the pharmaceutical and biotech sectors. The
company employs over 3,300 individuals and is headquartered in
Craigavon, Northern Ireland. US operations are based in
Pennsylvania, North Carolina and California. For more information about the
Almac Group, please visit www.almacgroup.com or e-mail
info@almacgroup.com
DSM – Bright Science. Brighter
Living.™
Koninklijke DSM NV is a global science-based company active
in health, nutrition and materials. By connecting its unique
competences in Life Sciences and Materials Sciences DSM is driving
economic prosperity, environmental progress and social advances to
create sustainable value for all stakeholders. DSM delivers
innovative solutions that nourish, protect and improve performance
in global markets such as food and dietary supplements, personal
care, feed, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, automotive, paints,
electrical and electronics, life protection, alternative energy and
bio-based materials. DSM's 22,000 employees deliver annual net
sales of about € 9 billion. The company is listed on NYSE Euronext.
More information can be found at www.dsm.com/pharma and
www.dsm.com
Forward-looking statements
This press release may contain forward-looking statements with
respect to DSM's future (financial) performance and position. Such
statements are based on current expectations, estimates and
projections of DSM and information currently available to the
company. DSM cautions readers that such statements involve certain
risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict and therefore
it should be understood that many factors can cause actual
performance and position to differ materially from these
statements. DSM has no obligation to update the statements
contained in this press release, unless required by law. The
English language version of the press release is leading.
For more
information:
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|
Guy Tiene
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Daniel
Mink
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Director, Marketing and
Communications
|
Corporate Scientist
Biocatalysis and (Bio)-Organic Chemistry
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DSM Pharmaceutical
Products
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DSM Innovative Synthesis
B.V.
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tel. +1 973 257 8160
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tel. +31 46 4760869
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email guy.tiene@dsm.com
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email daniel.mink@dsm.com
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SOURCE DSM