Catalyst

CPhI: Hot and Bothered or Cool and Confident?

Filed under: CPhI 2007, Alex Scott — ascott at 11:17 am on Wednesday, October 3, 2007
The flagship pharma manufacturing expo CPhI on Tuesday of this week opened its doors in Milan, Italy to an anticipated 22,000 attendees and 1,750 exhibitors. It’s a big beast. The mood among contract fine chemicals manufacturers exhibiting and attending the show interviewed by CW is one of confidence about prospects for growth in what executives are saying is becoming an increasingly lucrative period for the pharma outsourcing services sector.
The story revealed exclusively yesterday by CW that Pfizer is set to sell its Feucht, Germany pharma manufacturing site by year-end is just one indication of how big pharma is steadily cutting its production base and switching to contract manufacturers in a bid to improve efficiencies and reduce costs. As a result of this kind of information many western fine chemical firms exhibiting at this year’s CPhI say the signs are good.
Chemtura says its sales for reagents and chemical building blocks required for the production of active pharma ingredients (API) are growing at about 5-7%/year. The company says it expects that “certainly that growth ate will continue for the next few years” across North America and across Europe and that its business in Asian markets, although smaller, is increasing faster.
Many small size U.S. and European API manufacturers alike say that the prospects are good and that they are looking forward to between 5% and 10%/year sales growth, or even more. API manufacturers such as Helsinn say business is “going well.” Furthermore, concerns among western manufacturers about the threat of low cost Indian and Chinese contract manufacturers taking western companies’ market share seem to have dissipated somewhat.
Despite the apparent upbeat mood, many of the 22,000 CPhI attendees still appeared to be hot and bothered. The weather was on the warm side, queues to get most places were on the large side, the layout of the show was tricky and getting from A to B tended to be a struggle. As one exhibitor put it, on the first day “every one of our customers was 30 minute late.”
What’s your your take on CPhI?

-Alex Scott in Milan

1 Comment »

Comment by Lyn Tattum

October 4, 2007 @ 5:33 am

Agree - CPhI this year seems to be a victim of its own success. Logistics at the Fiera are a nightmare with illogical hall numbering, poor signage, long distances to trek between meetings, and puzzling restrictions on access to exhibitions areas.

Several visitors have noted the absence of Lonza as an illustration of things to come.

Is the show getting too big?
Lyn

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-Lyn

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-Lyn

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