Success together with CDMOs

Large CDMOs are great match for pharma developers with projects matching their capabilities and having sufficient funding, but maybe they don’t fit smaller ones. For example, a start-up biopharma company with a great idea about a new innovative treatment cannot rely only on big CDMOs. What it needs, is a partner that will listen to its needs, understand the challenges, and put it on the top of its priority list. It might be the case that a small biopharma company is indeed small for the CDMO giants, but it should also receive the attention it deserves and usually this can happen if a non-giant CDMO is selected. One that can support with a very small production at the beginning of the project to minimise risk, support with its scientific knowledge and expertise and in general treat the project as if it was his own project.

Working together with CDMO will ease the complex drug development process because it requires extensive expertise in each development stage. What would you consider partnering up with CDMOs to your success?

• Expertise – unique technologies, project management, manufacturing, regulatory
• Quality – track record, state-of-the-art facilities, high education level staffs
• Flexibility – development work & business models
• Partnership – creating long term partnership with clients, help them with network.

In addition, collaboration with a so-called one-stop-shop like GenScript ProBio provides a wide range of services, and it can solve various complex processes by using their capabilities from pilot to commercialisation stage.

Currently, there is no available capacity in the biopharma market for the demand wave that is coming, and very soon demand will exceed supply. So, if a CDMO has an expertise in one or two of the above mentioned biologic areas, this is fine. It is not so important to be able to offer the whole range of product types, as long as, you (as a CDMO) have real expertise in some of them. Potential customers with specific needs will value the fact that a CDMO is very strong in cell and gene therapies or antibodies for example as opposed to someone who produces everything. At the end of the day, most small and mid-sized biopharma companies also specialise in something and don’t have all types of products in their portfolio. These companies look for expertise in a CDMO. Expertise that will make them confident, that their new project will have the maximum possible probability of success.

This article was originally published in Autumn Edition European Biotechnology Magazine 2021.