MARCH - 202119TECH OUTLOOKa very cooperative environment. The CDMO's expert professionals gain comprehensive insights from each new project they encounter and from direct customer feedback. Then, they share these learnings with the IPT in order to improve on their performance for the next project. "Within the daily pressures that are part of the very nature of the contract development and manufacturing business, we pause to understand our customers' expectations and we are flexible enough to allow for change with every new case that comes our way," adds Andrea. Uquifa's staff implements a project management practice that is heavily influenced by IT agile principles. Additionally, this integrated project management culture managed by Uquifa has streamlined various execution and delivery processes. This enables the company to tackle one of the industry's biggest challenges: the transfer of technology effectively without loss of time and know-how.The industry's standard approach revolves around employing a single, dedicated network, with multiple, consecutive phases or gates. In some cases, there are separate end-users with complex contractual terms as well. The common denominator is the sequential nature, the static planning, and the transfer of risk and liability among the parties, which contributes to a siloed effect--curbing the collaborative experience during a project. This rigid approach is growing increasingly fragile. Nevertheless, Uquifa's agile methodologies go the extra mile to eliminate constraints and create a cooperative environment that promotes enthusiastic participation as well as a commonly shared vision. "Our experience in tech transferring programs at advanced clinical trial phases, coupled with our unique approach to project management, has been instrumental to our company's success," Andrea explains.Union of Efficient Facility Management and Scientific ExcellenceUquifa's staff maintains an incredible grip on the scientific aspects of the business, which was augmented by the company's acquisition of Soneas, in 2018. "Soneas is the perfect fit for Uquifa allowing the company to capitalize on 25 years of scientific excellence," shares Andrea. Since its inception, Soneas has been focused on finding synthetic routes at the early stages of drug development that result in scalable and robust processes with less time, effort, and funds being spent at later stages. The marriage of the two organizations has given the company the ability to support customers from pre-clinical development to on-going commercial supply. The Road AheadWith such a holistic and customer-centric approach in conducting business as a CDMO, Uquifa takes the mantel as one of the best solutions providers in today's European market. Its collaboration with a large American biotechnology company further shows the level of service and efficiency that Uquifa brings to its clients. Through this partnership, the company has participated in the supply chain for the production of intermediates necessary to produce an FDA-approved treatment for COVID-19. The company is extremely proud of this organisational milestone and intends to continually enhance its prowess as it has done for the past 85 years. Moving forward, Uquifa is set to expand its scientific knowledge, with the potential of facilities opening in new locations. By implementing the latest technologies into its workflows, the company is anticipating a new line of solutions and services to be added to its already extensive portfolio.
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