ATMI acquires Artelis in ‘disposables’ deal
The acquisition will see ATMI, which claims to have the broadest range of storage, mixing and stir tank disposable bioreactors available, add Artelis technologies to its offering in a bid to address a growing demand for disposables in the life sciences industry and to help get drugs to market quicker and more efficiently.
Speaking to in-PharmaTechnologist, Mario Philips, senior vice president and general manager of ATMI LifeSciences, said ATMI’s key motivation for the acquisition was “to create more value for its customers by going beyond the traditional value proposition of disposables.”
He suggested Artelis’ close relationship with customers, as well as expertise in cell line development and cell culture technology, can only help ATMI’s efforts to provide the biopharmaceutical sector with the industry’s most comprehensive single-use solutions and technical support.
By bringing “high-purity and ultra-clean products to a level of breadth and depth not seen before in the life sciences market,” he said, both firms can help support the development of human and animal vaccines, monoclonal antibodies, and cell therapy applications.
ATMI became an early investor in Artelis in 2006 and has since been working to advance disposable technologies for the life sciences industry. Now ATMI has acquired the remaining equity of the Brussels-based firm.
Under the terms of the acquisition, research and development (R&D) staff from Artemis will continue to researching and developing cell therapy applications as part of ATMI’s R&D team, and executives from Artelis will adopt new roles within ATMI.
Demand for disposables on the rise
According to Philips, the ATMI’s mixing technologies and innovative cube-shaped vessels that deliver yield improvements have the firm “well-positioned for success” in an industry that has seen a steady rise in demand over recent years.
Saying that companies are beginning to recognise that money can be saved, yields increased and that there is disposables are more environmentally sound, Philips argues “This shift in attitude is taking place as a result of the now proven benefits of single-use systems.”
ATMI’s rise in sales of its disposable goods, said Philips, can only serve as evidence of “budding growth of this new disposable manufacturing industry.”
