CPhI & CPhI Pharma Evolution Add Stellar Names to Expert Industry Panel

AMSTERDAM, July 16, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

13 full members confirmed on global panel with expertise covering the entire pharmaceutical supply chain

New panel members:

• Vijay Shah, COO at Piramal Enterprises and pharma business lead
• Mark Carver, Senior Vice President, Research, Development & Innovation at Fujifilm Diosynth
• Sam Venugopal, Director in the Healthcare Practice at PWC
• William Botha, Consultant and Founder Interlean
• Prabir Basu, former Executive Director at NIPTE
• Emil Ciurczak, expert on spectroscopy and PAT
• Dilip G Shah, CEO of Vision Consulting Group

CPhI Worldwide, organised by UBM Live, and CPhI Pharma Evolution have announced its full expert industry panel list ahead of the publication of a forward looking annual report (due out in September) examining future contingencies for the pharmaceutical industry. Additionally, the panel has also contributed to the first CPhI Pharma Evolution monthly report due out imminently [within the next week] examining the current trends in 'formulation and ingredients'- such as issues relating to growth of the market, development of tablets, QbD, PAT, bioavailability, outsourcing, dissolution and stability.

Each panel member has been individually chosen following an exhaustive selection process involving industry peers and journalists to ensure that the panel has the appropriate expertise to independently and holistically examine global trends. In total, CPhI now has 13 world renowned experts, covering the entire pharmaceutical supply chain from R&D through to finished products, regulatory requirements and economic implications.

The new panel members will provide a depth of experience and features experts from some of most innovative players in the pharmaceutical sector- including pioneers like Fujifilm Diosynth and Piramal.

Featured on the panel will be Piramal's pharma sector lead - spanning three divisions Pharma Solutions, Critical Care and Lab Diagnostics - Vijay Shah who has over two decades of experience and has overseen many business transformations. The Indian giant Piramal is transitioning from its traditional roots in contract and generics manufacturing towards the development of new chemical entities. This step change approach has marked a seismic shift from West to East, as increasingly companies like Piramal start to challenge the traditional big pharma developers of drugs, and crucially, begin to sell IP protected products into western markets. Vijay will leverage his perspectives on breaking through the patent cliff and the development of Antibody Drug Conjugates.

Joining Mr Shah will be PWC's Director of healthcare practice, Sam Venugopal who has over 15-years' experience across biotechnology and pharmaceuticals with expertise that span quality systems, regulatory compliance and supply chain activities- including working with the FDA on improving its own quality systems.

Mark Carver, Senior Vice President, Research, Development & Innovation at Fujifilm Diosynth also joins the panel and will bring a wealth of experience in the development of innovative technologies particularly in relation to scalable and validated manufacturing processes. His industry acumen and knowledge spans 20-years of work on recombinant protein products based on microbial expression in bacterial, yeast and filamentous fungal systems.

Another expert across R&D and drug manufacturing, Prabir Basu, formerly of the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Technology and Education (NIPTE), will direct the panel's attention towards how the industry can look to increase innovation. As the development of new compounds come to market it is important that development and manufacturing techniques keep pace with the changing landscape of drug targets. He has spent the last 10-years heading the NIPTE and is a renowned expert in looking at the future challenges in drug manufacturing and R&D.

Secretary-General of the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance and an expert on the Indian and worldwide regulatory landscape, Dilip Shah will provide insights into the future landscape and implications for pharmaceutical companies of potential changes. His experience spans over 45-years and through his consultancy practice (Vision) he works with some of the world's leading companies looking at strategic planning.

Emil Ciurczak provides an extensive range of pharmaceutical acumen across spectroscopy, PAT and QbD, having introduced NIR Spectroscopy consulting and written over 200 technical papers. He has also previously been a member of the FDA's PAT committee and is currently president of Doramaxx Consulting. The panel will be completed by William Botha, a respected trainer and mentor in manufacturing. He is fluent in FDA regulations, including GDP and GMP and has taught an aseptic processing course for PDA and a Quality Systems course for AAMI.

For the duration of 2013  members of the panel will take part in CPhI short monthly reports - entitled 'CPhI Pharma insight series' - examining topical issues across a total of eight broad themes: Drug Delivery; Formulation & Ingredients; R&D; Manufacturing; Packaging & Distribution; Regulatory Compliance; Contract Services & Supply Chain Management; and QA/QC.

The ultimate goal of the panel's inception is to utilise their respective areas of expertise to scrutinize how the industry will change across the coming 5-10 years in an annual report. The report will feature a mixture of primary industry data (industry surveys) and the collection of in depth essays from each panel member- with experts given carte blanche to prophesize how the industry will look and operate in the future from both an economic and practical perspective.

"Our panel provides a tremendous picture of all areas of the pharmaceutical value chain and, just as importantly, from different global perspectives. Collectively, our panel has hundreds of years of senior level expertise and they have been responsible for some of the industry's most innovative development and changes over the last 30 years. This knowledge gives them the depth of understanding that allows them provide an unrivalled picture of how the industry is predicted to change," commented Chris Kilbee, Brand Director, Pharma at CPhI.

For more information, please contact: cphi@ubm.com  

About CPhI

CPhI drives growth and innovation at every step of the global pharmaceutical supply chain from drug discovery to finished dosage. Through exhibitions, conferences and online communities, CPhI brings together more than 100,000 pharmaceutical professionals each year to network, identify business opportunities and expand the global market. CPhI hosts events in Europe, China, India, Japan, Southeast Asia, Russia and South America and co-locates with ICSE for contract services, P-MEC for machinery, equipment & technology, InnoPack for pharmaceutical packaging and BioPh for biopharma. CPhI provides an online buyer & supplier directory at CPhI-Online.com and hosts a global community with news and analysis at PharmaEvolution.com, produced by UBM Live and partners.

For more information visit: http://www.cphi.com

About CPhI Pharma Evolution

CPhI Pharma Evolution (http://www.pharmaevolution.com) launched in February 2013 as a global online community where professionals from across the pharmaceutical manufacturing sector can talk with their peers and share best-practices and regulatory updates across the pharmaceutical ingredient and contract manufacturing space. Pharma Evolution is the new go-to community for industry professionals to exchange thoughts and network on key areas including: formulation, APIs, excipients, drug delivery, R&D, manufacturing and quality, packaging and anti-counterfeiting, regulatory compliance, and outsourcing and supply chain management. Pharma Evolution was created as an extension of CPhI's global events business as a forum and resource for pharmaceutical executives to employ 365 days a year. Pharma Evolution is published by CPhI and UBM DeusM (http://www.deusm.com), the marketing services division of UBM specializing in building and operating highly engaged communities of qualified users within specialist B2B markets, using a strategy of best-practices focused on content and technology.

About UBM Live

UBM Live connects people and creates opportunities for companies across five continents to develop new business, meet customers, launch new products, promote their brands, and expand their market. Through premier brands such as TFM&A, Internet World, IFSEC, MD&M, CPhI, Cruise Shipping Miami, the Concrete Show, and many others, UBM Live exhibitions, conferences, awards programs, publications, Websites, and training and certification programs are an integral part of the marketing plans of companies across more than 20 industry sectors.

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