As the drive to outsource across the entire drug development pathway gains momentum, big pharma, smaller/mid-size biopharma, and virtual organizations alike are all looking for ways to progress assets and develop medicines quicker and with reduced cost.
Traditional silos are still very prevalent between each key subset of pharmaceutical development. Drug substance manufacturing, formulation development, clinical testing, and commercial manufacturing often stand apart as separate services and disciplines, usually procured through different vendors.
The effort to outsource across multiple vendors, managing complex logistics and supply chains, can make such savings in time and costs difficult to perceive and even harder to quantify. Quotient Sciences has paved the way for effective relationships with our customers and their consultants in many ways. All of these reflect our commitment to meeting customer needs by focusing on the molecule and sound science to guide development strategy.
Outside of our customer relationships, we actively engage with a large network of consultants globally. Consultant relationships are critical to help us understand market trends and customer needs through the eyes of an incredibly diverse, deeply knowledgeable group of industry experts. Our team of internal drug development consultants fosters these relationships, which creates a strong platform of mutual respect and shared scientific expertise.
What to look for when evaluating a CRDMO
We have always found it incredibly rewarding to collaborate with a range of customers and get exposure to a broad range of compounds and dosage forms. We have often thought about how we would select a development and manufacturing provider. If we all of a sudden found ourselves in our customers' shoes, what would we look for?
First, we would look for an organization that didn’t see itself as just a vendor. We would want to see that they cared about the project, with an appropriate sense of urgency, and that they really understood all objectives and key milestones. We would also expect them to have a good depth of scientific expertise.
If we were a small biotech company planning to sell an asset and exit at the Proof-Of-Concept (POC) stage, or maybe a big pharma business with a wealth of in-house expertise that plans to take this all the way – does our development partner understand my compound and my goals? We would want a partner that is collaborative and prepared to ‘sit round the table’ brainstorming and sharing expertise on the best project plan – best both in terms of robust science and timeline.
We want to see that the organization is nimble and has the autonomy to react to resources and capability needs and has a sense of proactive creativity. We would also want to connect with those who will actually deliver our program and ask if they are they as committed and strong scientifically as those who won our business?
We believe that our attributes answer those questions and underpin the ability to design and deliver complex integrated programs of work globally. They allow us to provide a differentiated level of scientific service to our customers.
Proactive communication, project management, and scientific acumen sets Quotient Sciences apart as a CRDMO
Proactive communication and a strong scientific problem-solving ability are critical, two things that stand out for us, along with our project management. When you pair strong scientific thinking and great communication skills with the unique and proven ability to integrate drug product development with clinical dosing/testing, it is a unique combination that our teams can offer.
Our clients are developing valuable assets to bring potentially life-saving medicines to patients. They should feel that this value and burden is understood and shared by those organizations supporting their development process.
Focusing on fundamentals, and really understanding the molecule that we are working with, from a physical and chemical perspective, means that our approach to working with customers is data-driven and scientifically robust. We allow science and customer needs to drive our approach and remain agnostic to the technologies used, pre-emptively addressing potential issues and trying to save our customers both time and money.
Quotient Sciences has a global team of scientific experts, with a key objective to ensure that we fully understand and support the wide range of molecules, customers, and customer needs that we encounter. Contact us today to learn more about how we can assist your next program.