What Are Some Fundamental Challenges Facing Biopharma Manufacturers?

A: AT THE GLOBAL PHARMACEUTICAL MANUFACTURING LEADERSHIP FORUM IN FRANKFURT, GERMANY, a list of current biopharma industry construction projects was presented. Of the 23 projects listed, at least six will cost more than $1 billion, and five will be in excess of $2 billion. While we are asking our vendors to be prepared to deliver on an unprecedented scale, we should also be asking if we, as manufacturers, can deliver. While these construction projects might represent about $20 billion in capital expenditures, let’s not forget that we’ll also need to carry in excess of $100 billion in potential product inventory. Can we as an industry afford this? Are we about to invest in capacity only to find out after the fact that it was too much?

Andrew Skibo
Andrew is the head of Global Biologics Operations & Global Engineering at AstraZeneca/MedImmune.