Tech transfer-created hubs can boost supply; Lilly
Acquisition of manufacturing knowledge, equipment and experience in low- to mid-income countries can be accelerated by transfer of production technologies from big pharma.
Equipping every country with manufacturing capacity is unnecessary though, Patrizia Carlevaro, head of the international aid unit at Eli Lilly, told in-PharmaTechnologist. Instead, regional production hubs should be created.
Building a regional production hub based-on technology transferred from an established pharmaceutical company has the potential to improve public health in a number of countries.
However, the effectiveness of the model depends on certain conditions. A suitable supply-chain is needed, said Carlevaro, and regulatory harmonisation would also make the system more efficient.
Initiatives to harmonise regulations in regions of Africa have been initiated by a number of organisations, Guy Willis, director of communications at the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA), told in-PharmaTechnologist.
Making progress on harmonisation could minimise regulatory burden on production hubs and shorten the time associated with expanding distribution into other countries.
Encouraging technology transfer
Technology transfer is viable when certain conditions are in place. Large, politically stable and economically integrated geographic blocs with strong healthcare systems and intellectual property are particularly attractive, said Carlevaro.
From a business perspective a company is more likely to be interested in being the recipient of technology transfer if the equipment and expertise gained can be applied to production of multiple drugs.
TB experience
Lilly has technology transfer experience from its tuberculosis (TB) partnership that sought to expand treatment access in disease hotspots. Initiation of the partnership has improved supply of TB treatments in South Africa, India, China and Russia,
Having completed the first two phases of the project Lilly is now helping its partners achieve sustainability, said Carlevaro. This would allow Lilly to reduce its involvement in the TB project but there are currently no plans to launch new partnerships targeting different diseases or geographies.
