Global automation expenditure in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries is expected to exceed US$3 billion by 2012, according to a report from ARC Advisory Group.
Despite tightening budgets and the current financial crisis, the market for automation products and systems in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries continues to be strong, the Group said.
Various process control, automation technology and test and measurement suppliers also supply their products to the pharmaceutical and biotech industries — especially those that can be used in for the chemical industry.
While ARC is confident that the global market will grow rapidly over the next three years, the research company also said that this factors in only the projects that are being invested in now, and doesn’t take into consideration many new projects over the period.
“However, much of the current automation focuses on projects with immediate return on investments, projects that are the result of consolidation of manufacturing operations, and standardisation of applications across the entire enterprise,” said ARC principal analyst for the CPG Industries, John Blanchard, who authored ARC’s ‘Automation Expenditures for Pharmaceutical and Biotech Industry Worldwide Outlook’ publication.
According to the publication, the four areas of focus in pharmaceutical and biotech manufacturing are manufacturing productivity, flexibility, and service; the new scientific risk-based approach to regulatory compliance; reducing the cost and time of technology transfer; and ensuring product quality, safety, security, and delivery.
The industry has also expressed concern over how it is going to support the ever-increasing level of automation with increasingly limited technical resources, the publication said.
The ARC study is designed to help users learn what others in the industry are doing and the capabilities of each supplier. It discusses strategies and tactics for suppliers and user manufacturers to be successful in the rapidly changing environment of the worldwide pharmaceutical and biotech industry.
For more information on the study, visit the ARC website.