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Lisbon, Portugal: Hovione, the specialist integrated CDMO and leader in spray drying and particle engineering, is proud to announce the opening of a state-of-the-art continuous tableting (CT) line at its R&D Center in Lisbon.   The new line is the result of the partnership with GEA, a global leader in process technology for the pharmaceutical industry. Since announcing their partnership in 2022, Hovione and GEA have worked to advance continuous tableting technology. Their collaboration seeks to boost the adoption of continuous tableting by offering increased capacity, flexibility, standardized equipment, improved quality, and enhanced efficiency. Together, they have shown that continuous tableting can become a more accessible technology. This new R&D line is the only one of its kind in the world and perfectly replicates the most critical components of Hovione´s state-of-the-art commercial CT line in Loures, Portugal. It also offers a high degree of flexibility in throughput and can handle highly potent Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API). “With this new line, we will be able to optimize operating conditions with minimum amounts of API and provide a higher technical certainty when transferring from development to commercial scale”, said Jaime Del Campo, Head of R&D Services at Hovione. “The flexibility of the rig and the real-time process data monitoring capabilities contribute to a more agile design and upscaling experience.” The new CT line at Hovione's Lisbon R&D center is now fully operational and ready to support both existing and new projects. This investment reinforces Hovione's global reputation in pharmaceutical manufacturing and highlights the company's commitment to delivering innovative solutions that meet the evolving needs of the industry and support quicker and more efficient market launches.    About Hovione Hovione is an international company with over 60 years of experience in pharmaceutical development and manufacturing operations. As a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) it has a fully integrated offering of services for drug substances, drug product intermediates and drug products. The company has four FDA inspected sites in the USA, Portugal, Ireland and China and development laboratories in Lisbon, Portugal and New Jersey, USA. Hovione provides pharmaceutical customers services for the development and compliant manufacture of innovative drugs, including highly potent compounds, and customized product solutions across the entire drug life cycle. In the inhalation area, Hovione offers a complete range of services, from API, formulation development and manufacturing, capsule filling and devices.     Hovione's culture is based on innovation, quality and dependability. Hovione is a member of Rx-360, EFCG and participates actively in industry quality improvement initiatives to lead new global industry standards.     Learn more about Continuous Tableting for Drug Product    

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Hovione Unveils New Continuous Tableting Line at Lisbon R&D Centre

Jun 18, 2024

Lisbon, May 21, 2024 – Hovione has placed fourth among the best companies to work in Portugal and was again the best in the Health Sector according to Randstad´s Employer Brand Research. The research, which was published yesterday, identified the 20 best employers in Portugal. This is the ninth annual edition of Ranstad´s study, which is based on a representative sample of the Portuguese workforce. The respondents evaluate companies according to a range of different criteria, including salary and benefits, job security, work atmosphere, and career progression opportunities. Employer branding can have a significant impact on an organization's ability to attract and retain top talent and so is becoming an increasingly important part of a company a strategy to address the talent shortage challenge.  Ilda Ventura, VP of Human Resources at Hovione explains that “Our global HR strategy is built on the need to attract, retain and empower our talented team members. Therefore, our Employer Branding needs to reflect the reality of who we are, so that we don’t just attract new talent but allow current team members to flourish. It also needs to capture the positive impact that Hovione has on the world, and how our innovative work relies on the knowledge and problem solving of our team members. We continue to work on refining and improving the work we do on our EB. This too is an important reflection of our values, and our belief in continuous improvement.” This is the third successive year that has been ranked as the most attractive company to work for in the Health Sector and placed in the top five overall  This recognition comes after Hovione was recognized as a Top Employer in all four of its global sites in January 2024, becoming the first company in Macau to do so.    About Hovione Hovione is an international company with over 60 years of experience in pharmaceutical development and manufacturing operations. As a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) it has a fully integrated offering of services for drug substances, drug product intermediates and drug products. The company has four FDA inspected sites in the USA, Portugal, Ireland and China and development laboratories in Lisbon, Portugal and New Jersey, USA. Hovione provides pharmaceutical customers services for the development and compliant manufacture of innovative drugs, including highly potent compounds, and customized product solutions across the entire drug life cycle. In the inhalation area, Hovione offers a complete range of services, from API, formulation development and manufacturing, capsule filling and devices.     Hovione's culture is based on innovation, quality and dependability. Hovione is a member of Rx-360, EFCG and participates actively in industry quality improvement initiatives to lead new global industry standards.  

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Hovione again ranks among best employers in Portugal

May 21, 2024

The new company, which will be located in Portugal, will focus on the development of drug delivery solutions for emerging drug modalities. Cell and gene therapies represent a paradigm shift in modern medicine, offering unprecedented opportunities to address previously untreatable diseases. ViSync solutions will help address some of the manufacturing challenges caused by the complex nature of new modalities, with special focus on stabilization, cell or tissue targeting and drug payload delivery.  Lisbon, 9th May 2024 – The specialist integrated CDMO and leader in pharmaceutical spray drying and particle engineering, and iBET (Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica), a private not-for-profit research intensive SME in the area of Biotechnology and Life Sciences, today announced the creation of ViSync Technologies, a new joint venture located in Oeiras, close to Lisbon. The newly formed company will focus on developing innovative technologies and scalable solutions to help pharmaceutical companies address formulation and manufacturing challenges in transformative cell and gene therapies. Hovione has a strong track record in industrializing new technologies and supporting Pharma Companies with their clinical and commercial volume manufacturing needs, while iBET has a strong biological background and a global reputation for its scientific knowledge of the new therapeutic modalities space, particularly cell and gene therapy.  New modalities, such as gene and cell therapies, RNA drugs and other complex biologics, are a rapidly growing segment of the pharmaceutical industry. They promise to bring breakthroughs to the treatment of a wide range of diseases and conditions, including cancer, genetic disorders, rare diseases and neurological conditions.  While this rapid growth has been driven by remarkable efficacy in addressing unmet clinical needs, the complex nature of the new modalities brings challenges, including limited drug administration options, immunogenic responses and off-target effects, issues with high dose delivery and high costs. The poor stability of these drugs is also an issue, resulting in the need for cold supply chains. ViSync will aim to develop novel technology platforms to address the unmet needs of pharmaceutical customers developing these transformative new products. “The creation of ViSync in collaboration with iBET marks an exciting new chapter in Hovione´s commitment to innovation”, said Dr Jean-Luc Herbeaux, Hovione´s CEO. “New therapeutic modalities have the potential to bring radical improvements to current standards of care and we are thrilled to partner with iBET, a world-renowned expert organization in this area, to develop technology platforms that help customers bring transformative therapies to patients worldwide. The first step will be to assemble a team who possesses the knowledge, expertise, and ingenuity needed to navigate the complexities ahead." “The establishment of ViSync in partnership with Hovione represents a pivotal moment in iBET’s dedication to pioneering research in advanced therapies,” stated Dr. Paula Alves, iBET’s CEO. “The immense promise of these new modalities is at our reach and we are delighted to join forces with Hovione, a globally recognized leader in technological industrialization and drug delivery. In this common endeavor, we will gather the scientific and technical competences and skills to support our clients and partners in delivering groundbreaking therapies to patients globally.” ViSync will develop its own lab facility in Lisbon and expects to be able to start its research and development work by the end of 2024.   About Hovione Hovione is an international company with over 60 years of experience in pharmaceutical development and manufacturing operations. As a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) it has a fully integrated offering of services for drug substances, drug product intermediates and drug products. The company has four FDA inspected sites in the USA, Portugal, Ireland and China and development laboratories in Lisbon, Portugal and New Jersey, USA. Hovione provides pharmaceutical customers services for the development and compliant manufacture of innovative drugs, including highly potent compounds, and customized product solutions across the entire drug life cycle. In the inhalation area, Hovione offers a complete range of services, from API, formulation development and manufacturing, capsule filling and devices.     Hovione's culture is based on innovation, quality and dependability. Hovione is a member of Rx-360, EFCG and participates actively in industry quality improvement initiatives to lead new global industry standards.   About iBET iBET is a private non-profit institution devoted to biotechnology research, with 35 years of experience creating and transferring knowledge to the global biopharma and biotech sectors. iBET’s core expertise lies on the development of bioprocessses and analytical tools for Advanced Therapeutic Medicinal Products (ATMPs), including cell and gene therapies, vaccines, antibodies and other innovative therapeutic products. Leveraged by the emerging areas of Data Science and Translational Immunology, we offer bespoke R&D services from early-stage R&D to GMP manufacturing.  iBET’s infrastructure comprises cutting-edge laboratories, a GMP certified Analytical Services Unit, and a Late-Stage R&D and Bioproduction Unit, covering upstream and downstream process development, bioanalytical tools for critical quality attribute monitoring, to scale-up and tech transfer. iBET also hosts satellite laboratories of major pharmaceutical companies and serves as an incubation platform for start-up/spin-off companies. iBET is driven by its innovative and agile culture of continuous improvement and a strong sense of ambition, ownership and commitment in developing and delivering the best solutions to our stakeholders.  

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Hovione and iBET announce the creation of ViSync Technologies, an innovative new company that will develop solutions for unmet needs in cell and gene therapy

May 09, 2024

Hovione and GEA further strengthened their partnership, resulting in the launch of the ConsiGma® CDC flex Continuous Tableting Technology and the installation of a lab-scale R&D rig in Hovione´s facilities in Portugal. The agreement furthers Hovione´s ability to bring the benefits of continuous tableting, including reduced time to market and increased supply chain flexibility, to pharmaceutical customers globally. A presentation explaining how the technology has advanced will take place during a conference in Portugal (16–18 April), organized by Concept Heidelberg. Lisbon, March 18, 2024 – Hovione, the specialist integrated CDMO and leader in spray drying and particle engineering, and GEA, a global leader in process technology for the pharmaceutical industry, today announced the next stage of their partnership, with new development agreements, the launch of the ConsiGma® CDC flex as well as the installation of a new lab-scale R&D Continuous Tableting rig in Hovione´s facilities in Portugal. The two companies’ collective and complementary knowledge of continuous tableting is being applied to streamline the technology and make it more accessible to pharmaceutical customers worldwide. The two expert teams are collaborating to bring continuous tableting to the same level of maturity as batch tableting, thereby capturing the known benefits of continuous manufacturing while reducing the downsides. The ConsiGma® CDC flex (patent pending), has been designed as a truly versatile system which can operate seamlessly in both continuous and batch modes and offer both high and low throughput functionality. With a focus on user-friendliness, the ConsiGma® range will be augmented further with new developments to simplify routine development operations and introduce automated workflows and Smart controls interfaces, empowering operators to streamline production processes. GEA will also supply Hovione with lab-scale feeding and blending systems for research and development (R&D) applications which will bolster Hovione’s current GMP equipment for both continuous direct compression (CDC) and wet granulation continuous tableting and complement the non-GMP test capabilities of GEA in Wommelgem. Since signing the original collaboration agreement last year, the two companies have worked predominantly on two areas of the partnership: technology development and the joint promotion of continuous tableting. Presentations explaining how the technology has advanced will take place during the continuous tableting conference in Cascais, Portugal (April 16-18), organized by Concept Heidelberg, and another event Princeton NJ, USA (September 16-18), organized by Continuous Manufacturing Forum. “We believe that continuous tableting can offer significant benefits to our customers, not only by shortening time to market and reducing development and manufacturing costs but also by improving product quality and sustainability”, commented Filipe Gaspar, VP Technology Intensification at Hovione. “Through our collaboration with GEA, we aim to revolutionize the continuous production of oral solid dosage forms, making the technology more accessible and efficient for pharma customers.”   “Hovione and GEA benefit from a very large and complementary pool of continuous tableting experts; together, their collective knowledge is being applied to make continuous processing much less complex” stated Phillip Gabb, Strategic Business Director, Pharma Solid Dosage at GEA Pharma & Healthcare. “There is an industry perception that a lot of highly qualified and well-trained people are required to run a continuous line. The partnership’s intention is to simplify that, make it no different to running a standard tablet press and enable existing operators — with the right guidance — to use continuous manufacturing equipment.”  Background information About Hovione Hovione is an international company with over 60 years of experience in pharmaceutical development and manufacturing operations. As a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) it has a fully integrated offering of services for drug substances, drug product intermediates and drug products. The company has four FDA inspected sites in the USA, Portugal, Ireland and China and development laboratories in Lisbon, Portugal and New Jersey, USA. Hovione provides pharmaceutical customers services for the development and compliant manufacture of innovative drugs, including highly potent compounds, and customized product solutions across the entire drug life cycle. In the inhalation area, Hovione offers a complete range of services, from API, formulation development and manufacturing, capsule filling and devices.     Hovione's culture is based on innovation, quality and dependability. Hovione is a member of Rx-360, EFCG and participates actively in industry quality improvement initiatives to lead new global industry standards. About GEA GEA is one of the world’s largest suppliers of systems and components to the food, beverage and pharmaceutical industries. The international technology group, founded in 1881, focuses on machinery and plants, as well as advanced process technology, components and comprehensive services. With more than 18,000 employees, the group generated revenues of about EUR 5.4 billion in more than 150 countries in the 2023 fiscal year. GEA plants, processes, components and services enhance the efficiency and sustainability of customer’s production. They contribute significantly to the reduction of CO2 emissions, plastic usage and food waste. In doing so, GEA makes a key contribution toward a sustainable future, in line with the company’s purpose: ”Engineering for a better world“. GEA is listed on the German MDAX the European STOXX® Europe 600 Index and is among the companies comprising the DAX 50 ESG, MSCI Global Sustainability as well as Dow Jones Sustainability World and Dow Jones Sustainability Europe Indices.  

Press Release

Hovione and GEA Strengthen Partnership to Advance Continuous Tableting Technology

Mar 18, 2024

Hovione has entered into a license agreement with Dragonfly Technologies, Inc. to offer its customers the breakthrough micellar technology developed by Prof. Lipshutz. The agreement provides Hovione with the capability to develop chemistry-in-water, enabling a significant reduction in carbon footprint compared to conventional chemical processes relying on traditional organic solvents. Lisbon, March 07, 2024, Hovione, the specialist integrated CDMO and leader in spray drying and particle engineering, today announced it has signed an agreement with Dragonfly Technologies, Inc. to gain access to its micellar technology for chemistry-in-water processes, developed by Prof. Bruce Lipshutz of the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). Hovione will further progress the technology to make it an integral part of its API manufacturing technology offering.  Micellar chemistry enables multiple chemical transformations to take place in nanomicelles dispersed in water, mimicking natural chemical transformations. The technology allows reactions to occur at lower temperatures and enables the reduction or even the avoidance of rare and expensive metal catalysts. At the same time, by minimizing the use of organic solvents, it can also reduce the carbon footprint of the desired chemical reactions.  Dr. Jean-Luc Herbeaux, Hovione’s CEO commented: "Manufacturing of APIs and their intermediates make up a significant proportion of the overall carbon footprint of pharmaceutical product manufacturing. Gaining access to Dragonfly’s groundbreaking micellar technology is a key step in our journey to introduce more sustainable manufacturing options at industrial scale. This proprietary process technology enables the use of less energy-intensive conditions, lower levels of precious metal-containing catalysts, and lesser use of organic solvents.” Prof. Bruce Lipshutz said: “I am delighted about the collaboration between Hovione and Dragonfly on micellar catalysis chemistry in water. Hovione has a long history of developing and industrializing innovative technologies for the pharma industry. This agreement will help ensure that aqueous micellar technologies will have wider and faster market adoption, benefiting the industry as a whole, by enabling development of nature-based sustainable processes in water.” This collaboration is another example of Hovione´s commitment to expanding its technology platforms and contributing towards creating a more sustainable industry. The company is investing both in new assets and innovative technologies to meet customer demand for more sustainable integrated and differentiated development and manufacturing services for drug substances, particle engineering, and drug products. This new agreement follows on from other partnerships recently forged by Hovione to deliver new innovative solutions to customers, including those with IDC, to offer innovative nasal delivery devices, with H&T Presspart for the advancement of a dry powder inhaler platform, with Zerion Pharma to commercialize the Dispersome® technology platform and with Ripple Therapeutics to expand the use of the Epidel® platform beyond ophthalmic applications. In addition, in November 2024 Hovione acquired ExtremoChem, a company with a portfolio of rare sugars which have shown potential in stabilizing biopharmaceuticals. Note to editor: Dragonfly Technologies, Inc. is a company founded by Prof. Bruce Lipshutz which is devoted to micellar technology. About Hovione: Hovione is an international company with over 60 years of experience in pharmaceutical development and manufacturing operations. As a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) it has a fully integrated offering of services for drug substances, drug product intermediates and drug products. The company has four FDA inspected sites in the USA, Portugal, Ireland and China and development laboratories in Lisbon, Portugal and New Jersey, USA. Hovione provides pharmaceutical customers services for the development and compliant manufacture of innovative drugs, including highly potent compounds, and customized product solutions across the entire drug life cycle. In the inhalation area, Hovione offers a complete range of services, from API, formulation development and manufacturing, capsule filling and devices.     Hovione's culture is based on innovation, quality and dependability. Hovione is a member of Rx-360, EFCG and participates actively in industry quality improvement initiatives to lead new global industry standards.  

Press Release

Hovione partners with Dragonfly Technologies to offer micellar chemistry technology to customers as a sustainable alternative to conventional chemical processes

Mar 07, 2024

Hovione has been recognized as a Top Employer in all four of its manufacturing sites, in Lisbon (Portugal), Cork (Ireland), East Windsor (NJ) and Macau. Hovione is the first company to be certified as a Top Employer in Macau. Hovione’s 3 other sites, who had achieved Top Employer status in 2023, showed improved results this year.   Lisbon, January 18, 2024, Hovione, the specialist integrated CDMO, leader in spray drying and particle engineering, is delighted to announce that it has been recognized as a Top Employer in all four of its manufacturing sites. Hovione is the first ever company to be certified as a Top Employer in Macau. This marks a significant milestone in the company's commitment to fostering a supportive workplace environment and providing meaningful and rewarding roles for its team members. It also demonstrates that “One Hovione”, a company´s strategic initiative to give team members an equally high-quality experience across all locations, is delivering.  The certification program by the Top Employers Institute evaluates organizations through their participation in and outcomes of the HR Best Practices Survey. This comprehensive survey encompasses six domains and addresses 20 topics from Career Development to Leadership and from Employee Wellbeing to Equity & Inclusion and Wellbeing, amongst others. The program has certified and recognized over 2,300 Top Employers in 121 countries/regions across five continents.  "Hovione is a company committed to excellence and differentiation and being a Top Employer is an integral component of Hovione's People Strategy. I am pleased to see that our continuous improvement program, supported by Top Employer´s best practices benchmarks, resulted in our progressing along multiple dimensions at all our locations”, commented Ilda Ventura, Vice-President for Human Resources and Member of the Management Board of Hovione.     Macau Special Administrative Region Douglas Lau, Human Resources Director for Hovione Macau, said that “It is a real achievement to be the first company in Macau to be a Top Employer. This demonstrates that companies in Macau can offer the same high quality workplace environment as anywhere else in the world. Coming so soon after Hovione was awarded the Medal of Merit from the Macau Government, it is also a further demonstration of how Hovione creates jobs that have real value to both our team members and the wider society. Portugal Catarina Tendeiro, HR Senior Director for Hovione Portugal, said that “We are thrilled to announce that Hovione has once again been recognized as Top Employer. This is a confirmation of our ongoing commitment to developing an exceptional workplace environment for our team members, who represent our most significant resource and our company´s main differentiator. I was especially pleased that this year’s report demonstrated improvement in several key areas, including Business and People Strategy, Leadership, Performance and Career and Learning. This demonstrates our desire to listen to feedback and to continue to improve our workplace experience.  USA Erin Tetreault, HR Director for Hovione New Jersey said, “We are thrilled to announce that Hovione has once again been certified as a Top Employer. We believe that our people are our strongest asset and this certification demonstrates our ongoing commitment to create a workplace culture that goes beyond safety and quality and helps all team members to feel truly valued. I was especially pleased that this years’ report showed improvement in several key areas, including Leadership, Work Environment and Employee Wellbeing. This demonstrates our desire to listen to feedback and to continue to improve our workplace experience." Ireland Imelda Cummins, HR Director for Hovione Ireland commented, “We are delighted that Hovione has once again been certified as a Top Employer. Hovione´s team members represent our strongest asset and enable us to offer our customers the high-quality products and services that Hovione is known for. It also shows our ongoing commitment to developing a great workplace environment. I was especially pleased that this year’s report demonstrated improvement in several key areas, including Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Learning, Sustainability and Career Development. This demonstrates our desire to listen to feedback and to continue to improve our workplace experience.   About Hovione: Hovione is an international company with over 60 years of experience in pharmaceutical development and manufacturing operations. As a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) it has a fully integrated offering of services for drug substances, drug product intermediates and drug products. The company has four FDA inspected sites in the USA, Portugal, Ireland and China and development laboratories in Lisbon, Portugal and New Jersey, USA. Hovione provides pharmaceutical customers services for the development and compliant manufacture of innovative drugs, including highly potent compounds, and customized product solutions across the entire drug life cycle. In the inhalation area, Hovione offers a complete range of services, from API, formulation development and manufacturing, capsule filling and devices.     Hovione's culture is based on innovation, quality and dependability. Hovione is a member of Rx-360, EFCG and participates actively in industry quality improvement initiatives to lead new global industry standards.   About Top Employers Institute: Top Employers Institute is the global authority on recognising excellence in People Practices. We help accelerate these practices to enrich the world of work. Through the Top Employers Institute Certification Programme, participating companies can be validated, certified, and recognised as an employer of choice. In 2024, Top Employers Institute has certified more than 2300 organisations in 121 countries/regions. These certified Top Employers positively impact the lives of over 12 million employees globally.    

Press Release

Hovione certified as a Top Employer in all of its manufacturing sites

Jan 18, 2024

Pharmaceuticals manufacturer Hovione has been awarded a Medal of Merit for industry and commerce in the government’s 2023 honours list, with Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng praising the company’s contributions to Macao’s emerging life sciences industry. The Portuguese company’s Macao site manager, Eddy Leong, said in a statement that it was a “great honour” to receive the Medal of Merit – which he saw as a tribute to almost 40 years of local work in the science sector. “At Hovione, we like to say that we are ‘in this for life’ and I feel that this award reflects not only our long and successful history in Macao, but also points to our successful future here,” he said.  “It also reflects our commitment to work with partner organisations to create rewarding career opportunities in life sciences,” Leong added. Hovione was founded in 1959 in Portugal and opened its Macao plant in the mid-1980s. The facility produces generic active pharmaceutical ingredients and is located in Taipa, on the site of the old Him Un Iec Kei Chan firecracker factory. Other 2023 honourees include wushu athlete and Asian Games gold medalist Li Yi, who received a Silver Lotus, and the Portuguese-language educator Felizbina Carmelita Gomes – currently director of the D. José da Costa Nunes Kindergarten. Gomes was awarded a Medal of Merit for education.   Read more at Macao News  

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Hovione ‘delighted’ by its Medal of Merit

Dec 27, 2023

22 December, 2023, Hovione is delighted to announce that the Hovione Macau site has been awarded the Medal for Industrial and Commercial Merit by the Government of Macau, a Special Administrative Region of the People´s Republic of China. The site underwent its first of many successful FDA inspections in 1987 and ever since has produced off-patent pharmaceutical actives, which are sold in the global market and boost Macau´s exports. With 180 employees, it is the largest pharmaceutical site in Macau. Over the years, Hovione has worked with a range of governmental departments to support the development of the pharmaceutical industry in Macau. This includes collaborating with the Macau Labor Affairs Bureau to develop the local workforce and create careers in the pharmaceutical industry. Hovione also works with the Education and Youth Development Bureau to organize visits from schools and universities and to arrange internships within the company for students. Team members are also invited by Macau University to give lectures on good manufacturing practice (GMP) and chemical analysis. Eddy Leong, Site Manager of Hovione Macau said: “It is our great honor to receive this Medal of Merit. We would like to express our gratitude to the Macau SAR Government and all sectors of society for recognizing the company's nearly 40 years of presence and industrial activity in Macau. At Hovione, our motto is “In it for life” and this award not only reflects our long and successful history in Macau, but also points to our successful future here. It also reflects our commitment to work with partner organizations to create rewarding career opportunities in life sciences.” The Medals of Merit cover seven categories (Industrial and Commercial, Tourism, Education, Culture, Altruism and Sports). They are intended to reward individuals or organizations that stand out in the exercise of their professional activity.   About Hovione: Hovione is an international company with over 60 years of experience in pharmaceutical development and manufacturing operations. As a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) it has a fully integrated offering of services for drug substances, drug product intermediates and drug products. The company has four FDA-inspected sites in the USA, Portugal, Ireland and China and development laboratories in Lisbon, Portugal and New Jersey, USA. Hovione provides pharmaceutical customers services for the development and compliant manufacture of innovative drugs, including highly potent compounds, and customized product solutions across the entire drug life cycle. In the inhalation area, Hovione offers a complete range of services, from API, formulation development and devices.  Hovione's culture is based on innovation, quality and dependability. Hovione was the first Chemical/ Pharmaceutical Company to become a Certified B Corp, is a member of Rx-360, EFCG and participates actively in industry quality improvement initiatives to lead new global industry standards.

Press Release

Hovione awarded prestigious industry medal by Macau Government

Dec 22, 2023

Hovione and Industrial Design Consultancy (IDC) have entered into a joint development of an innovative nasal powder delivery device technology supporting local, systemic, and nose-to-brain drug delivery. Nasal delivery is a simple and safe alternative to conventional delivery routes for drug delivery, which offers a faster onset of action. It is also seen as a promising pathway to deliver new drugs to the brain and treat diseases of the central nervous system. Lisbon, November 29, 2023, Hovione, the specialist integrated CDMO, leader in spray drying and particle engineering, just announced an expansion of its nasal drug delivery capabilities with the addition of a family of innovative nasal powder delivery devices developed in partnership with IDC. Intranasal drug delivery is a good alternative to conventional delivery routes for both local and systemic drug delivery due to its simplicity, safety, and faster onset of action. Additionally, it is emerging as a promising pathway to deliver new drugs to the brain to treat diseases of the central nervous system (CNS).  Hovione and IDC have been working together to accelerate the development and commercialization of two new active nasal powder delivery devices, one single-use and one multidose. The devices enable broad and targeted nasal deposition flexibility while delivering maximum usability and reliability. By using standard capsules and filling equipment, they also have the potential to simplify drug product development and manufacturing.  "Intranasal drug delivery is gaining momentum across a number of applications, including mucosal vaccination and CNS treatments bypassing the blood-brain barrier", says Dr. Jean-Luc Herbeaux, Hovione's CEO. He adds: "Our partnership with IDC, a company with vast experience in industrial design, mechanical and electronic engineering of medical devices, enables Hovione to offer a complete solution for nasal powder delivery – covering Active Pharma Ingredients (APIs), formulation, filling, analytics and device design and manufacturing - that address the needs of pharmaceutical companies and patients".  “By combining Hovione’s capabilities in pharmaceutical development, formulation and manufacturing with IDC’s device development expertise, this partnership offers customers a nasal powder delivery solution which can be rapidly adapted to new pharma compounds and therapies” explains IDC´s Managing Director, Dr Stephen Knowles, “Our joint development team has done incredible work to create unique, high performance nasal powder delivery devices.” Hovione will offer the new devices on an exclusive basis as part of its integrated offer for nasal drug development and manufacturing.    About Hovione: Hovione is an international company with over 60 years of experience in pharmaceutical development and manufacturing operations. As a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) it has a fully integrated offering of services for drug substances, drug product intermediates and drug products. The company has four FDA-inspected sites in the USA, Portugal, Ireland and China and development laboratories in Lisbon, Portugal and New Jersey, USA. Hovione provides pharmaceutical customers services for the development and compliant manufacture of innovative drugs, including highly potent compounds, and customized product solutions across the entire drug life cycle. In the inhalation area, Hovione offers a complete range of services, from API, formulation development and devices.  Hovione's culture is based on innovation, quality and dependability. Hovione was the first Chemical/ Pharmaceutical Company to become a Certified B Corp, is a member of Rx-360, EFCG and participates actively in industry quality improvement initiatives to lead new global industry standards.   About IDC: IDC is a leading medical product design and development consultancy dedicated to using its creativity, insight, experience and expertise to make the best possible products and deliver commercially successful products for clients and partners.  With over 50 years’ experience and ISO13485 compliant processes and facilities in London and Shanghai, IDC’s experts in user research, design, mechanical and electronics engineering and rapid prototyping work to create award-winning, world-leading products for global markets.    IDC’s track record includes many commercialized drug delivery devices across inhalation, nasal and injectables with a focus not just on design but also ensuring a smooth transition to production and regulatory approvals. IDC’s mission statement is “We innovate to create successful products which improve people’s lives”.  

Press Release

Hovione expands nasal drug delivery capabilities with the development of nasal powder delivery device technology in collaboration with IDC

Nov 29, 2023

Hovione has acquired start-up company, ExtremoChem, expanding its technology platforms.   Specialist integrated contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), Hovione, has acquired ExtremoChem, which is a start-up company with a portfolio of rare sugars, expanding its technology platforms. According to a Nov. 16, 2023 press release, the acquisition gives Hovione access to ExtremoChem’s portfolio of rare sugars. These high-performance functional materials are synthetic analogues of the natural molecules found in extremophiles–organisms that can survive in uninhabitable environments—and have shown the potential to stabilize biopharmaceuticals during production, purification, formulation, and transportation. “Proteins and other biopharmaceuticals account for a significant share of our customers’ pipelines,” said Dr. Jean-Luc Herbeaux, CEO, Hovione, in the press release. “The acquisition of ExtremoChem’s synthetic sugars combined with Hovione's particle engineering capabilities provides our customers with a unique set of tools to optimize formulations that address stability issues encountered during the life cycle of biopharmaceuticals.” “I am delighted that ExtremoChem has been acquired by Hovione,” added Filipe Aguiar, managing director, ExtremoChem, in the press release. “Hovione has a long history of developing and industrializing innovative technologies for the pharma industry. This acquisition will help ensure that the science we developed at ExtremoChem will have a wider and faster market adoption.” This latest news from Hovione further bolsters the company’s position in seeking to expand its technology platforms, which it reports is needed to meet customer demand for integrated and differentiated development and manufacturing services. The acquisition of ExtremoChem adds to new partnerships forged by Hovione, such as that with H&T Presspart for the advancement of a dry powder inhaler platform and with Ripple to expand the use of the Epidel platform beyond ophthalmic applications.   Read the full article at PharmTech.com    

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Hovione Expands Technology Platforms with ExtremoChem Acquisition

Nov 23, 2023

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