04-Oct-2006 - Following numerous manufacturing failures, Discovery Laboratories believes it has resolved the stability issues that have plagued Surfaxin, its experimental respiratory treatment for infants, and is now seeking a meeting with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to address its concerns.
03-Oct-2006 - A majority stake in Irish biotechnology contract services firm Archport has been snapped up by German-based Chemie Uetikon as the bio-outsourcing market heats up.
02-Oct-2006 - Drug developing services provider Aptuit has acquired the pharmaceutical services division of technology firm EaglePicher, enriching its active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) and drug substance manufacturing offerings.
28-Sep-2006 - US contract pharmaceutical manufacturer Metrics has announced a $17.5m (€13.7m) investment to double the size of its drug testing and manufacturing plant over the next three years.
25-Sep-2006 - To escape stagnating growth, hospital supplies firm Hospira has agreed to buy Australia's Mayne Pharma for $2bn (€1.56bn), creating the world's biggest manufacturer of generic injectable drugs.
25-Sep-2006 - Patheon's move to Puerto Rico is shaping up to be the worst decision the contract manufacturer has ever made, resulting in massive losses in the third quarter of 2006 and leading management to entertain the possibility of a sell-out.
25-Sep-2006 - Bilcare, India's largest research-based pharmaceuticals packaging company, has bought UK-based clinical trials services (CTS) provider DHP in a bid to build itself up to be one of the few players in this sector with global servicing capability.
22-Sep-2006 - Bentley Pharmaceuticals has announced it will use the North Carolina facilities of US-based services provider Cardinal Health for the scale-up and manufacture of the clinical supplies of its new intranasal insulin product.
19-Sep-2006 - Cardinal Health has been given the green light from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to start manufacturing the first commercial drug at its new sterile facility in North Carolina.
18-Sep-2006 - Kemwell has sealed the deal on the purchase of Pfizer's Swedish manufacturing plant and at the same time secured a long-term contract manufacturing agreement with the drug giant.
14-Sep-2006 - Successful technology transfer and effective management can help avoid disappointment with contract manufacturing arrangements, which often fail to live up to pharmaceutical company expectations.
14-Sep-2006 - India's Essel Propack, the largest speciality packaging company in the world, is acquiring Packaging India Private Limited (PIPL) from the CavinKare Group, keen to capture more of the country's booming pharmaceutical packaging market.
13-Sep-2006 - A good selection process, with a realistic set of selection criteria is essential when looking for the right contract manufacturing partner, according to a new Datamonitor report.
12-Sep-2006 - Offshoring contract manufacturing is not the only option for large pharma firms looking to drive productivity and efficiency gains in drug manufacturing, warns a new report from independent market analyst Datamonitor.
06-Sep-2006 - Dalton Pharma Services has introduced a range of new medicinal chemistry services that are available to companies involved in drug discovery that wish to utilise additional scientific and managerial expertise as well as specialised equipment.
05-Sep-2006 - After selling a manufacturing plant in Texas to Cardinal Health two years ago, Adams Respiratory Therapeutics has reacquired the facility in order to produce its expectorant Mucinex (guaifenesin extended-release), responding to a 15-fold growth in sales in the last couple of years.
29-Aug-2006 - Biopharmaceutical firm Altus has asked contract manufacturer Althea to produce Phase III quantities of a crystallised formulation of human growth hormone (hGH) which can be administered subcutaneously weekly instead of daily.
23-Aug-2006 - Despite its consolidation, the competitive consumable sector still offers potential for rapid growth and better profits in the biopharmaceutical industry, while contract bioprocessing services will be increasingly in demand, according to a new market report by D&MD Publications titled "The Bioprocessing Industry - Increasing Capacity, Production, and Efficiency."
23-Aug-2006 - For the first time Merck has opened the doors of its under-construction manufacturing plant in North Carolina to public officials, boasting it will eventually contribute about two-thirds of its annual live-virus vaccine production.
21-Aug-2006 - A cartridge shortage that forced Amylin and Eli Lilly to ask 40,000 physicians in the US to stop prescribing their injectable diabetes drug Byetta to new patients has come to an end thanks to a boost in production by contract manufacturer Baxter.
15-Aug-2006 - India's potential to further boost its already dominant role in global generics production, as well as an offshore location of choice for contract manufacturing, presents an opportunity worth an estimated $48bn (€38bn) in 2007, though regulatory reforms and improved intellectual property rights are needed if its domestic market is to be tapped, a new report from KPMG suggests.
15-Aug-2006 - More problems at Patheon's Puerto Rican production facilities in the third quarter of 2006 are expected to reduce the contract manufacturer's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) by more than $9m (€7m) compared to last year, forcing it to negotiate its credit agreement with its lenders.
08-Aug-2006 - West Pharmaceutical Services has reported a huge surge in both sales and profits for its second quarter, spurred on by the increasing demand for injectable drugs as well as the lucrative Exubera manufacturing contract, which helped double sales for the segment, although failed to stop a fall in profit margin.
03-Aug-2006 - Cambrex's Q2 results show that the life sciences firm is slowly making a comeback after being crushed by a $140.3m (€116.7m) loss in Q4, however, it has failed to completely stem the bleed from its Biopharma unit, blamed for much of the company's woes.
01-Aug-2006 - Chinese company Dragon International has fought its way into its first packaging materials distribution deal in the burgeoning Indian pharmaceutical market.