Single-source outsourcing model saves pharma sponsors $45m, Tufts report

The study was conducted by The Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development (CSDD) and was supported by a grant from Patheon, which is now a part of Thermo Fisher Scientific​.

“We brought the Patheon OneSource program to the industry to help our clients get to the market, and to patients, in the most efficient and cost effective manner​,” Jennifer Therrien, head of campaign strategy at Thermo Fisher Scientific told Outsourcing-Pharma.com.

The company provided the grant to Tufts CSDD to “validate that clients are indeed accelerating their timelines under the single-vendor drug development model​,” she explained.

Therrien said the results further confirm Thermo Fisher’s analysis of the cost and time savings sponsors can achieve when using a single source for drug development and manufacturing.

The results​

The study compared various contract manufacturing approaches and the financial benefits of the different models. The results indicate that using a single-source outsourcing model shortens the drug development cycle, and in turn, saves on costs.

“If one-source contracting shortens the development cycle, sponsors can expect financial gains from having their products reach the market sooner​,” according to the report.

A single-source partner has the potential to shorten timelines by an average of 14 weeks, according to the report, subsequently resulting in reduced costs by nearly $21m after taxes and increased net revenues by almost $24m – a net gain of approximately $45m.

However, the report noted further research “would be useful​” in confirming the results.

“The results here and in any expanded analyses will be driven by the extent to which single-source contracting can compress development times​,” the reported concluded.