KEES VONK
The pharmaceutical industry is literally a matter of life and death. In the past year, we have been confronted with this even more emphatically. The important work they do for, among other things, vaccines and medicines requires a great deal of research and accurate and traceable production methods. KH Engineering is constantly expanding its role in the pharmaceutical sector.
Most drug manufacturers have production and research sites, sometimes in one physical location, and sometimes in several. No fewer than 29 pharmaceutical companies from the global top 30 have a foothold in Belgium. They include Johnson & Johnson (the parent company of Janssen), GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer, UCB, Teva and BASF. In the Netherlands, there has recently been a huge wave of billion-dollar investments, led by the American pharmaceutical companies Merck & Co (MSD), Johnson & Johnson and Gilead. It is therefore a sector with a lot of investment power and KH Engineering wants to play a bigger role in it. That is why KH Engineering recently conducted a market survey, in order to gain better insight and to better tailor our service offering to this very interesting market.
Types of active ingredients
In medicine, the most important component is the active ingredient (API). There are different kinds of APIs: synthetic, biotechnological and nuclear APIs. Synthetic APIs consist of chemicals. Biotechnological APIs are made from living organisms, such as bacteria and yeast. Nuclear APIs are ingredients for radiopharmaceutical drugs. These APIs are produced by irradiating raw materials in reactors or accelerators.
API producers
The API producers can be divided into three categories. Some work with 'captive manufacturing' to produce their own medicines. 'Merchant manufacturing' is intended for the open market to traders or distributors. In 'contract manufacturing', a manufacturer works on behalf of other pharmaceutical companies. KH Engineering is literally at home in all these markets and has a role as an engineering agency for various manufacturers. For one pharmaceutical company, we work on the day-to-day maintenance of their production facilities; for another, we provide the complete EPCM of a new construction or expansion project.
Clean, strict, traceable
‘The ambitions of KH Engineering in this market are high', says Commercial Manager Kees Vonk. ‘That is why we have now set up a special "Pharma team", in which colleagues from Belgium and the Netherlands work together and share their knowledge and expertise. On the one hand, we have a lot of expertise to grow geographically in Europe and to serve more pharmaceutical manufacturers. On the other hand, we are in the process of entering into strategic partnerships with companies that can support us. For example, in demonstrating compliance with CGMP (Current Good Manufacturing Practice), the strict standard that the American FDA (Food & Drug Administration) prescribes for pharmaceutical companies. After all, in an environment where life-saving medication is produced, you have to have the cleanest and most stringent production processes. Every step you take has to be traceable, from the very first design of a production line to the raw materials in the blister pack you take home.'
Black piping
In addition to the extremely demanding production environment, the pharmaceutical sector also needs what they call "black piping": 'these are the utilities that do not come into contact with the product but are nevertheless badly needed, for example steam or air cooling. These utilities do not fall under CGMP but are crucial to the production process. Here too, KH Engineering can play an important role. In the coming months, KH Engineering will continue to work hard to gain a stronger position in the pharmaceutical market. To be continued!'
For more information about what KH Engineering can do for you or are you interested in the infograpic of the research? Please contact Kees Vonk at kees.vonk@khe.eu of +31 (0)6 54972747.