Almac Pharma Services, a member of the privately owned Almac Group providing innovative pharmaceutical development, manufacture and commercial services to global pharmaceutical and biotech organisations, has announced the completion of multiple assessments in support of a global pharmaceutical industry Consortium to help address the challenge of titanium dioxide (TiO2) usage in drug products. With over 50 years’ experience in product development and an established reputation for oral dose formulation expertise, Almac Pharma Services was selected by the Consortium to support the critical investigation into TiO2-free systems with the aim of future proofing the delivery of safe and effective solid oral treatment supply to patients in need. Due to its unique properties, TiO2 has been used as a colourant, opacifier and for protection from UV radiation on solid oral dosage forms for decades. In 2022, following an assessment by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the EU commission banned TiO2 from use in food but allowed its ongoing use in medicines upon the recommendation of the EMA, with a further review scheduled for April 2024. The European Commission is expected to make a final decision on the ban in February 2025 following the update EMA assessment[1].
In celebration of World Book Day this April 23, Almac Group is pleased to fund Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s (CHOP) award winning, national Reach Out and Read programme serving the Primary Care, Souderton location for one year, effective immediately. Almac’s backing will allow Reach Out and Read at CHOP to procure 6,000 books to be distributed by medical providers at CHOP Primary Care, Souderton to all patients ages newborn to five during well-child visits. As an early literacy intervention programme, the Reach Out and Read model enables physicians and nurse practitioners to use the books as a developmental surveillance tool during well-visits and as a springboard for conversations with parents about the importance of reading aloud, all while building home libraries for children no matter their financial resources. As a celebration of World Book Day and the launch of this partnership, a volunteer activity at Almac is set for April 23 for employees to help prepare over 1,000 books for the inaugural book delivery. “Almac is thrilled to promote the importance of equitable access to literacy this World Book Day through our support of Reach Out and Read at CHOP,” said Valarie Higgins, Managing Director and President of Almac Clinical Technologies. “Recognising how vitally important early literacy skills are for childhood development, we applaud CHOP’s incredible efforts to make this award winning programme accessible in Greater Philadelphia.”
Almac Pharma Services, a member of the privately owned Almac Group providing innovative pharmaceutical development, manufacture and commercial services to global pharmaceutical and biotech organisations, has announced the appointment of Terry Ernest as its new Director of Manufacturing Science and Technology. Terry has extensive experience within the pharmaceutical development and manufacturing industry, including a deep knowledge of a variety of dose forms including modified release formulations, tablets, capsules, oral liquids and sterile liquids. A Chartered Biologist with a Masters Degree in Industrial Pharmacy and PhD in Pharmaceutics, Terry joins Almac from GSK where he held a number of senior positions over his 30 year tenure, including his most recent role as Director, Product Development at its site in Ware, UK. As a subject matter expert in age-appropriate drug development, Terry is a member of several paediatric focus groups in addition to multiple product development industry bodies and has published a number of papers on the topic. He has also been invited to deliver technical presentations at global conferences and industry events throughout the last 20 years. James Hurst, VP Operations & Charnwood Site Head, commented on Terry’s appointment “We are delighted to welcome Terry to our team of established experts. His vast experience and product development expertise will provide additional technical support to our growing client base. His appointment comes a
Almac Group is a global leader in providing a range of expert services and support across the drug development lifecycle. Niall Harkin, executive director of Almac Group, commented on Almac’s support for the ESG category in Belfast Telegraph Business Awards. “Being a responsible business has always been ingrained in our culture at Almac. ESG (environmental, social and governance) is key to how we do business, and it is of growing importance for our clients, our people, and our potential new employees. Now more than ever it is imperative that companies act on ESG. “Given its rising importance, it’s crucial to acknowledge the changes you need to make, be transparent about the progress made, and then take steps to make the changes happen. We are pleased to support the ESG category at this year’s Belfast Telegraph Business Awards, to recognise a company that has demonstrated excellence in this area with an ambitious ESG agenda right at the heart of its organisation.”
Almac Sciences, a member of the Almac Group, has been awarded a Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund (LSIMF) Grant to support the expansion of its small molecule active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) manufacturing facility at its Global Headquarters in Craigavon, UK. The grant will support the installation of the expanded facility, already under construction, which is due for completion in Summer 2025. Once complete, the 30,000 sq ft facility will support small molecule API production at 100s kg to metric tonne scale. As announced by Jeremy Hunt, UK Chancellor, Almac was one of two UK pharmaceutical companies awarded the grant to support manufacturing expansion projects. The Department for Science Innovation and Technology (DSIT) reopened the LSIMF in 2023 to support businesses investing in manufacturing projects in the UK. Over its lifetime, the fund will provide capital grants for investments in the manufacture of human medicines (drug substance and drug product), medical diagnostics and MedTech products. Almac Sciences has grown rapidly over the last five years and this expansion is part of a multi-million-pound investment programme to support increased client manufacturing demands. The first stage of Almac’s GMP facility expansion was announced late 2022 with an extension to its current GMP manufacturing facility, and warehouse expansion opened Summer 2023.
Almac Group, the global contract development and manufacturing organisation, is delighted to announce that the Group’s Pharma Services and Sciences divisions have, once again, been recognised in all six core categories in this year’s CDMO Leadership Awards programme. The annual award programme, presented by Outsourced Pharma and Life Science Leader, recognises top performing CDMOs, celebrating outstanding companies in drug development and manufacturing, emphasising high standards of quality, integrity and innovation exemplified in their work. Results are based solely on primary market research by Industry Standard Research (ISR), with winners in each category judged by their customers as either exceeding expectations or as top performers in outsourced projects conducted within the past 18 months. Almac holds an exceptional record of client service, further underscored by the CDMO Leadership Awards programme and its primary research-driven methodology. The company is a privately owned and independent CDMO that has grown organically for over five decades, now employing over 7,200 and undergoing significant expansion in capacity and technology exceeding £400 million across the globe. This year, 98 contract manufacturers were assessed by 23 performance metrics in ISR’s annual Contract Manufacturing Quality Benchmarking survey. This experiential feedback was analysed by sponsor company size to reveal leading CDMOs in different performance categories.
