Pharmaceutical Industry | Processing & Engineering: Knowledge, News and Analysis

Groundbreakers: Tomorrow's Drug Manufacturing Facilities

Modular construction and disposable process equipment are maximizing agility and minimizing risk Read more »

Split Decisions: Tablet Scoring Under More Scrutiny

FDA provides more direction as questions arise about dosage consistency. Read more »

Take Our Compliance Quiz

Think you're a compliance expert? Receive a perfect score on our monthly quiz and you'll become a Compliance Champion and be entered into a monthly drawing for a custom coffee mug. Read more »

QbD: Redefining Time to Market

For manufacturers who lack formulation and process knowledge, the benefits of getting to market fast can be outstripped by the costs of unexpected failures. Read more »

Funny Pharm: Write the Cartoon Caption & Win

"Funny Pharm," sponsored by Paratherm Corp., features drawings by award-winning cartoonist Jerry King. Submit your caption and win. Read more »

White Papers

Evaluating Library Databases for Microbial Identification: Critical Aspects and Recommendations A thorough evaluation process for microbial identification systems should consist of both a technical and financial review, regardless if you are performing internal testing and outsourcing. All evaluations should include a detailed list of specifications to meet your laboratory’s objectives. Most laboratories perform evaluations by examining obvious system attributes and tangible features: work flow, automation, labor and technical requirements, cost of reagents and consumables, capital expenses and interfacing with laboratory information systems. A key component often neglected in the review process is the impact and effect of library databases on performance in a pharmaceutical environment, including comparing comprehensive depth of library entries, accuracy and relevancy to obtain a species level identification.
Three Steps to Leveraging Expertise in Global Pharmaceutical Production
Reducing Airborne Contaminants with Polymeric Floor Coverings
Rotary Tank Cleaning and Cost Savings
View more white papers »

Events Calendar

Keep track of upcoming events relevant to the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry. Visit our events calendar.

Industry News

Industry Voices

Product Center

View all products »

Backpack Reporting

View more videos »

Audio Update

Focus on Pharma: Episode 24: The Facility of Tomorrow: Biopharma Leads the Industry Biopharmaceutical manufacturers are reducing risk and cost by using modular construction, disposable process equipment, contained equipment and other innovations. Will they change the industry's approach to plant design and engineering?
Focus on Pharma: Faster Knowledge and Technology Transfer Using Video Transferability of experimental methods is a problem for industrial and academic labs alike, wasting millions of dollars each year. The Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE) uses video to help transfer the knowledge required to carry out lab experiments successfully. Co-founder Moshe Pritsker discusses its business model, industry issues and how the journal works.
Taking the Emotion Out of Pharma Outsourcing: John Gray Discusses Recent Research into Quality Risks Offshore Outsourcing and offshoring are touchy subjects for any community anxious about losing potential industry and jobs. A study in November's issue of the Journal of Operations Management suggests that quality risks increase when operations are moved offshore, but emphasizes the fact that this is a knowledge management problem. Lead author, Professor John Gray of Ohio State University's Fisher College of Business, discusses the study, industry reaction, misunderstandings and upcoming research on this important, but difficult, topic.
Focus on Pharma Episode 20: FDA and USP Collaborate to Update Standards for Over-the-Counter Medications A September workshop sponsored by FDA and USP will examine progress in modernizing analytical methods and test procedures, to help prevent adulterated over-the-counter medications from reaching the public. Impurities testing and material identification will be critical. Both Agencies summarized recent progress in these efforts at a July science advisory board meeting.
Focus on Pharma: FDA's Friedman Urges Better Supplier Oversight and Investment in Quality; Any Questions? Call Me, says FDA's Rothman Understaffing quality operations, failing to oversee suppliers and contractors, and blaming problems on mid-level QC and manufacturing managers, is not the answer. At a summer conference on GMP's, FDA's Rick Friedman and colleagues Barry Rothman and Steven Wolfgang, discussed the roots of current supply shortages, and emphasized the need for proactive communication with the Agency and its district offices. They also responded to criticism on the way the Agency's handling inspections.
Focus on Pharma Episode 18: New Blueprints for Pharmaceutical Quality by Design Critics have questioned industry’s commitment to QbD, but a recent conference sponsored by NIPTE was well attended by industry, and presented an important new case study. Editor in Chief Agnes Shanley reviews the conference and NIPTE’s Prabir Basu shares his views.
Podcast: Lean Labor: Applying Discipline to the Pharma Workforce Gregg Gordon’s new book, Lean Labor, looks at how Lean and continuous improvement efforts must go beyond manufacturing, materials, and machines and also address worker needs and productivity.
Podcast: TruProcess: Next-Generation Near-Infrared (NIR) Spectrometer for Pharmaceutical Processing Duane Sword, Sr. Director, Thermo Scientific discusses the capabilities and technical attributes of TruProcess, an advanced NIR spectrometer for real-time blend analysis, drying and other process analytical technology (PAT) applications.

Hear more from Audio Update »

Career Center

Recent Job Postings:

Create a Career Profile Put your anonymous Career Profile up today and employers will begin pitching you job opportunities.

Sign-up for Job Alerts Your personal Job Alerts notify you by email of new jobs posted that match your search preferences.

Utilize Career Resources Browse our content library, enlist the help of a trained career coach or simply ask an expert for career advice.

From the Editors

From the Editor: Adulteration, 21st Century StyleAs legislators and the courts re-examine an old fashioned word, sins of omission will count as much, if not more, than sins of commission.
Continue reading »More From the Editor articles »
PharmaView: Fake Drugs: Why Business is BoomingIt’s time to make counterfeiting less economically tantalizing.
Continue reading »More PharmaView articles »
Digital Insights: Novartis Overtakes Pfizer in 2011 Good Web Buzz RankingsZeta Interactive has published its annual end-of-year Buzz Report, recapping the most buzzworthy pharmaceutical brands’ trends and stories from 2011.
Continue reading »More Digital Insights articles »
Therapeutic Dose: Sampling: Good News, Bad NewsChanging from the status quo to meaningful testing will satisfy both FDA and ASTM.
Continue reading »More Therapeutic Dose articles »

Aseptic Processing

View: Articles (29) Whitepapers (8) Industrynews (3) Products (96)

Environmental Monitoring and Certification in Controlled Environments: Meeting Regulations and Achieving Effective Microbial Control for Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Manufacturers

More white papers »

Automation & Control

View: Articles (326) Whitepapers (99) Industrynews (6) Products (348)

The Executive Guide to Contract and Chargeback Management: How Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Smartly Automate to Strengthen Profitability

More white papers »

cGMPs and Compliance

View: Articles (153) Whitepapers (44) Industrynews (79) Products (30)

Compliance, Risk and Cost of Ownership Comparisons for Pharmaceutical Continuous Monitoring: Wired, Wireless and Standalone Monitoring Systems

More white papers »

Contract Manufacturing

View: Articles (89) Whitepapers (12) Industrynews (36) Products (8)

Articles

Biomanufacturing Morphs

Looking for Supply Chain Answers in 2011

Biotech Production: Planning, Scheduling and Throughput Analysis with a Combined Theory of Constraints, Lean and Simulation Approach

PDA 2010: Stopper Sensibility

Bringing More Science to Tableting

Popular Content
Just Posted
Latest Jobs
Video/Audio

Get Connected Now!

Video Library

View more videos »

Online Poll

Webcast Library

Webcast: Supply Chain Security at Pfizer: Threats, Strategies, and Successes Recent high-profile product recalls and counterfeiting cases have drawn attention to the need for drug manufacturers to work across the entire supply chain to ensure product safety and quality. Join Brian Johnson, Pfizer Senior Director of Supply Chain Security, and consultant Russ Somma, in a webcast discussion of best practices for ensuring supply chain security.
Webcast: Turning Biopharm Data into Knowledge: A Patient-Centered Approach Biopharmaceutical manufacturing is often described as "data rich, but information poor." Focusing on essential data, and making it accessible to those who need it, in the format most useful to them, is the key to improving product quality, ensuring compliance and reducing time to market. What do manufacturers need to do, and how are forward-thinking companies tackling this problem? Join us for a program exploring issues, presenting today's best practices and exploring future solutions.
Webcast: Reinventing Lean in the Pharma Lab In this program, Pfizer’s Ciarán Crosbie and BSM’s Lorcan Mannion illustrate how pharmaceutical laboratories can master the concepts and tools of levelling and flow and achieve significant gains. The presentations are based upon successful implementations at Pfizer’s Grange Castle, Ireland facility.

More webcasts »