Hyderabad - Biotech & Pharmaceutical Hub Updates

[rizwan3]

http://www.exclventures.com/News/Newslink-10994.asp
Hyderabad News.Hitec City to Have Fortis Hospital Complex in 4 Acres

Hyderabad News. TOI 09.11.2010

An international hospital with commercial and residential facilities will soon come up in Hyderabad.The hospital will be developed by New Delhi-based Hospitalia Eastern Private Ltd., which represents the Fortis Hospitals.


The Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA&UD ) department issued a GO (No 482) on Monday allotting four acres land at Khanamet village in Serilingampally mandal on 33-year lease basis to the company.

The estimated cost of the project would be about Rs 200 crore.During the lease period,the developer would pay five per cent of market value of the land,which is Rs 10,000 per square yard,or approximately Rs 96.8 lakh as annual lease rent with annual escalation of five per cent over the previous year.


Officials justifying land lease to the group claim that if the hospital is constructed,nearly 1,000 people would get direct employment and another 800 indirect employment at the health facility.The government order said the proposed hospital project would contribute towards better patient care and health management.

The developer has tie-up with Fortis,a healthcare chain.
The Hospitalia Eastern Pvt Ltd would adopt three to four villages in the adjoining Medak and RR districts and take care of overall health care of villagers and also conduct health camps,cardiology and eye camps in different parts of the state.

[World8115]

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[rizwan3]

Originally Posted by World8115

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[Prodigist]

Apollo's stem cell research facility in H'bad to be opened shortly

Apollo Hospitals Educational and Research Foundation (AHERF), an autonomous organization spearheading the research activities of Apollo Hospitals Group, is all set to open its stem cell research facility in Hyderabad in a month, it is learnt. The facility will be located at the Apollo Health City in Hyderabad.

The AHERF has already entered into collaboration with the US-based StemCyte Inc., which has a cord-blood stem cell facility in Ahmedabad for the same. The StemCyte holds 51 per cent stake in the joint venture, while AHERF 49 per cent. The total initial investment involved in the project is $15 million.

Ranjit Roy Choudhary, chairman, AHERF, said, "Apollo is setting up a stem cell research facility in Hyderabad and we have already recruited a team for the same. The facility will supply stem cells on demand to Apollo group hospitals all over the country."

The centre would use stem cells from bone marrow and cord blood of patients in research and treatment for diseases such as cardiovascular, cerebral palsy and limb ischemia. The objective was to provide scientific basis to therapy in the absence of published studies in clinical cell research.

At the same time the AHERF, which manages 200 clinical trials currently, has a preferred partner agreement with Quintiles India for clinical trial sites. The specific studies are either for registration of a new drug molecule or for marketing. About 50 per cent of the clinical trials are submitted either for US FDA or European Union registration. In the last one decade, AHERF has conducted over 350 global multi-centric phase II / III / IV clinical trials in the areas of oncology, cardiology, neurology, endocrinology, pulmonology, vascular surgery, etc. Apollo has partnered Quintiles to start a phase I clinical trial unit at Apollo Health City, Hyderabad and is managed by Quintiles.

[rockystone]

Ocimum closes $8 million to fuel future growth

Ocimum Biosolutions today announced its growth plans after having closed funding worth $ 8.0 million from multiple sources, including founders and existing shareholders, in order to cater to the growing demand for its integrated genomic services and to provide unparalleled, hassle-free user experience by enhancing its RaaS (Research as a Service) platform.

The company is in the process of building a state-of –the art integrated campus in Patancheru, Hyderabad. Part of the funds will go into completing this 360,000 sq ft facility spread across four blocks. This sprawling four acre campus housing the GLP compliant, genomic and diagnostics labs is scheduled for move in by March 2011.

[rizwan3]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/c...ow/7108335.cms

Eye surgeries shoot up in Hyderabad
TNN, Dec 16, 2010, 03.28am IST

HYDERABAD: In what has become a December ritual, city eye hospitals have recorded a 50 per cent rise in the number of eye surgeries being performed at their premises. Eye specialists attribute the record jump in their clientele to the NRIs who are here for the holiday season and are going under the knife mainly for Lasik surgeries. To add to this, eye hospitals in the city are also seeing a 15-20 per cent surge in the number of patients of cataract who have opted for surgeries this month.

While doctors say that numbers shoot during the winter months every year, there is a further rise in numbers this year. Doctors say that conducive weather, a holiday season and a relatively free month makes December a comfortable time to go for such surgeries. Specialists at Apollo Hospital said that NRIs who come for vacation during this time are major contributors to the rise. "Being a holiday season for them, many NRIs are undergoing Lasik surgeries for correcting myopia and hypermyopia among other complications here at a much lesser cost," said Dr K Sreekumar Reddy, consultant ophthalmologist, Apollo Hospital. He further said that the hospital is recording a 50 per cent rise in Lasik surgeries and 15-20 per cent rise in cataract surgeries.

L V Prasad Eye Hospital in Banjara Hills has also recorded a 15-20 per cent rise in these surgeries this month. Doctors here said that a large number of people usually plan for non-emergency eye procedures in December and first half of January.

However, it is not just the NRI crowd filling up hospital beds this December. The state-run Sarojini Devi Eye Hospital, which mostly gets people from below the poverty line, too is witnessing a rise in the number of cataract surgeries. "Since patients are advised that water should not enter the eyes for about a week after the surgery, people tend to avoid the hot summer months as well as the rainy season as they cannot take head bath if they undergo a surgery," says Dr Vidyavathi, superintendent, Sarojini Devi Eye Hospital. Dr Vidyavathi says that people from other districts do not prefer travelling during summer and are busy during the monsoon. Hence, they prefer to undergo cataract procedures during this month.

Though doctors say that this is an annual ritual but note that the trend is changing slowly because of the introduction of sophisticated technology which has reduced the healing time as well as hospital stay. But they do admit that winter being the preferred month for surgeries as a notion is here to stay.

[Prodigist]

International Rice Research Institute

to set up rice research institute at ANGRAU, Hyderabad

Chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy might just end up realising the dream of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. In welcome news for a state beleaguered by the Telangana tango that has brought investments to a halt, the world-renowned International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) based in the Philippines is all set to open shop in Hyderabad.

The advanced research facility that IRRI is scheduled to operate from Hyderabad is to be the first international facility of the institute outside the Philippines. The main campus is located in the University of Philippines at Los Banos, close to the country capital Manila.

Hyderabad has been chosen by IRRI because of the importance of rice cultivation in the state, the country and the South Asian region. The facility will concentrate on the varieties that could withstand long-duration submergence of crop due to floods as well other extreme climatic conditions.

According to sources, a high-level delegation of scientists led by IRRI director general Robert S Zeigler is scheduled to meet Kiran Kumar Reddy on January 5 to finalise the proposal on setting up of the state-of-the-art Molecular Breeding Facility (MRB).

After the devastating impact of the great Bengal famine in the 1940s, Nehru in the 1950s wanted IRRI to set up its institute in India and offered the National Rice Research Centre located in Cuttack to be upgraded to international standards. However, partly due to opposition from the then Orissa government and also due to Indian scientists' reservations about new rice varieties, his plans did not fructify.

This facility will herald a new phase in rice research in Andhra Pradesh which has been facing natural calamities like drought, cyclone and floods repeatedly in the last few years. Former director general of IRRI M S Swaminathan, who will be in the city on Thursday, is expected to discuss with state officials the details of the facility that will come up in Hyderabad.

IRRI wants to develop the facility as a major training centre for young graduates who could then strengthen research capacity in Andhra Pradesh, Zeigler assured the chief minister in a letter. In fact, a year ago, then agriculture minister Raghuveera Reddy had offered assistance if the IRRI was interested in setting up their campus in Hyderabad.

According to sources in the CMO, Zeigler's letter to the CM said that the Hyderabad facility would focus on the entire south Asian region. "Our intention to set up this facility in Hyderabad has also been influenced by the fact that this is a world-class city and its infrastructure and other facilities are second to none," Zeigler wrote in the letter. Praising Hyderabad as the seed capital of India, Zeigler said the IRRI's presence would definitely provide an additional boost to the rice seed industry in the state.

IRRI wants to locate the facility in an extent of 80 acres in Acharya NG Ranga Agricultural University (Angrau) as it wants to collaborate with the university as well. The students and faculty of Angrau will have access to this world-class MBF and will benefit from their interactions with many internationally renowned scientists who will be based there, Zeigler said in the letter. Angrau vice chancellor P Raghava Reddy said the university is positively disposed to the proposal.

This (MRB) will facilitate developing a breeding programme that will produce a new generation of varieties that are better suited to local cropping environment and also meet consumer preferences, Zeigler said. Once set up, the IRRI will pump in Rs 80 core to Rs 90 crore per annum into the rice research activities.

[rizwan3]

http://www.pharmabiz.com/article/det...262&sectionid=

BioAsia 2011 to be held at Hyderabad from Feb 21-24

Tuesday, January 11, 2011 08:00 IST
Hyderabad

The Federation of Asian Biotech Associations (FABA) in association with the University of Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh government and Pharmaceutical Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil) will organize the BioAsia 2011: The Global Business Forum at Hyderabad from February 21 to 24, 2011.

The eighth edition of BioAsia, an annual event being held since 2004, will be inaugurated by Kapil Sibal, minister of Human Resources and Science and Technology and Kiran Kumar Reddy, chief minister of Government of Andhra Pradesh will preside over. The theme of the event is “Boosting Bioeconomy”.

The event, comprising conferences, trade shows and business to business platforms, is expected to create opportunities for academic and industrial collaborations and showcase latest trends and technology to a large gathering of biotech fraternity from across Asia and the world.

It will have three track conferences such as MediAsia, HealthAsia and AgriAsia. The MedAsia track will focus on oncology, diagnostics and medical devices, AgriAsia on latest developments in the world in Agribiotech and HealthAsia on pharmaceuticals with emphasis on biopharma and vaccines.

The event will also see the release of whitepapers by Grant Thorntom, knowledge partner of the event, on indigenous medical devices, merger and acquisitions in the pharma and biotech industry and learning’s from the evolution of agri sector globally.

[rizwan3]

http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/bus...ma_511878.html

Expect to cross Rs 500cr in revenue this yr: Natco Pharma

[rockystone]

Symphony Pharma to ink deals with domestic, overseas firms to provide CRAMS

Symphony Pharma Life Sciences, a Hyderabad-based Custom Research And Manufacturing Services (CRAMS) provider, is in an advanced stage of discussions with several leading domestic pharmaceutical companies to provide custom research and manufacturing services.

The discussions with domestic pharmaceutical companies are to provide custom research and manufacturing services in both Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) and formulations. The company, which has already completed more than 50 projects for various leading national as well as international companies, is also in discussions with many foreign companies to provide CRAMS. Currently the company is working on 20 projects.

Talking to Pharmabiz, Dr C Prabhakar, chief executive officer, Symphony Pharma Life Sciences, said, "We are in discussions with a number of domestic and foreign firms to provide CRAMS. The discussions with Indian companies are to enter into agreements for partnerships". The agreements with domestic companies will be of multi-year in nature and back-to-back agreements for manufacturing, he elaborated.

The company, currently located in the Alexandria Knowledge Park, is in the process of setting up a new Research and Development (R&D) centre with cGMP pilot plant and a manufacturing facility at the Genome Valley, Hyderabad. The first phase of the facility, which is coming up in two phases, will be completed by May this year. The new facility, with a land area 0f 45000 square feet, will have six process chemistry labs and two fully equipped analytical labs.

According to the company, in a short span of time it has established a track record of developing and delivering projects to the customers in record time, right from the conceptual stage to multi-kilo state. The projects handled include those from big pharma companies, generic players, and biotech companies across the world.

The Symphony Pharma Training, a sister institute of Symphony Pharma Life Sciences and providing integrated training to young chemists and scientists in various branches, is planning to increase the number of branches with the opening of the new facility. It has also plans to expand the short-term pharma training courses.

[rizwan3]

http://www.exclventures.com/News/Newslink-11047.asp

Hyderabad News.Zephyr to invest $5 m in Hyderabad start-up Aizant Drug

Hyderabad News. E 18.01.2011

IN its first investment in the drug development space,private equity fund Zephyr Peacock India will invest $5 million in Aizant Drug Research Solutions.

The global PE fund will take a minority stake in the Hyderabad-based start-up that provides contract research outsourcing,formulation development and clinical research services to both international and domestic pharmaceutical companies.Pharma companies use these services for conversion of base drug molecules into marketable and consumable forms ,says Mukul Gulati,managing director,Zephyr Peacock India.


The global outsourcing market for drug development is estimated to be at $120 billion annually,with clinical trials accounting for almost 70% of the time and money invested in new drug development.Emerging markets including China,India and Eastern Europe are emerging as hotbeds for clinical research outsourcing.This is the next wave for the global pharma industry analogous to outsourced product development in the IT sector,says Gulati.The Aizant team which consists of Indian origin scientists with global work experience will use the funding to expand operations across other emerging markets.


Apart from technology upgradation,we will also use a portion of these funds to increase partnerships with local educational institutions and invest in training local personnel,says Varma Rudraraju,founder,Aizant who feels the company cannot depend on external sourcing alone for its talent needs.Future growth will depend on building a strong network of local talent,he added.The four year old firm now employs about 160 people in its local development centre.

This is the second investment this year for the fund that put in 22.5 crore in early January into telecom services firm Metro Telworks.Zephyr Peacock India Fund I was launched in 2006 and Zephyr Peacock India Fund II in 2008.We expect to make an additional three investments this year in sectors ranging from education,logistics,and agri-businesses,says Gulati who estimates that most investments will fall in the median range from $5 million to $15 million each.

Our sweet spot for investing is typically in the $8 million to $10 million range he added.With offices in New York and Bangalore Zephyr focuses on investing in small and medium enterprises that focus on domestic consumption

[Prodigist]

IICT sets up NATIONAL MOLECULAR BANK in Hyderabad

The Hyderabad-based Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT), a premier research institute in the country, has set up an automated compound storage and retrieval system in its campus in Hyderabad.

The facility, which has been named as National Mol Bank (NMB), will be used for the storage of natural products, samples from organizations and institutes across the country. The system is designed to offer a storage capacity of 16 million samples in tubes and vials and will be capable of future seamless expansions.

According to the institute, the facility is first of its kind in the country and is similar to the NIH Molecular Libraries Small Molecule Repository in the USA.

“The IICT was chosen for setting up this national facility and will be used for storage of natural products, samples from organizations and institutes across the country”, said Dr J SYadav, director of IICT.

The facility, funded by CSIR and Department of Science and Technology (DST) will showcase a high performance, high quality facility providing long term high integrity compound storage and automated compound retrieval. It will allow Indian scientists to screen small molecules in a high throughput fashion to identify hit molecules much more efficiently for various human ailments.

Director General of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Prof. S K Brahmachari inaugurated the facility on January 18, 2011.

[rizwan3]

http://www.vancouversun.com/business...013/story.html

Quintiles Speeds Early-Phase Decision Making with New Unit in Hyderabad, India

Quintiles, the only fully integrated bio pharmaceutical services company offering clinical, commercial, consulting and capital solutions worldwide, today officially opened its new Phase I research facility in Hyderabad, India at Apollo Health City.


Quintiles Phase I Facility in Hyderabad. (Photo: Business Wire)

Constructed in partnership with Apollo Hospitals Group, the new facility will complement Quintiles existing Phase I facilities around the globe to help customers navigate complex early development challenges and make key decisions early. It will provide biopharma customers additional options to complete integrated Phase I programs across multiple geographies at this pivotal stage in medical research.

Eddie Caffrey, Senior Vice President and Head of Quintiles Phase I globally comments: “Sponsors, are under intense pressure to speed delivery of results, ethically, and without compromising patient safety or quality of data. With this new, state of the art, Phase I facility in Hyderabad, India, we will be better able to ally with customers by providing access to large numbers of healthy volunteers for simple studies, in parallel to more complex studies conducted by scientific experts in Europe and the US.”

“We are excited to be working with Quintiles to deliver high quality Phase I studies for international customers in India. Apollo has pioneered the provision of many medical and surgical procedures in India and our mission is to bring healthcare of international standards to within the reach of every individual,” says Ms. Shobana Kamineni, Executive Director, Apollo Hospitals Group.

“With this new unit we are reinforcing India’s position as a key player in the global drug development market and expanding the options available to pharma sponsors.”

The team in Hyderabad under leadership of Ashish Jain, Executive Director will work to global standards and procedures and will be connected to sites in London, Uppsala and Kansas through Quintiles global data network to simplify study management for sponsors and provide integrated information and perspective as early as possible in the development process.

The 86-bed unit will evaluate compounds developed both in India and in other countries. Data capture will be linked electronically to Quintiles other Phase I units in UK, US, and Sweden. Thirty two beds are equipped with technically advanced diagnostic cardiology equipment for TQT studies.

In addition, this unique Phase 1 facility at Apollo Health City, Hyderabad, Quintiles also has offices in India, with existing operations in Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Delhi, and Mumbai. Expertise across the country covers a wide range of therapeutic areas, including leading physicians and experts in the areas of oncology, CNS, infectious disease, and cardiovascular disease.

[rizwan3]

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/...2751491100.htm

Beams opens hospital in city

Hyderabad, Jan. 26

Beams Hospitals, the Mumbai-based chain popularising minimal access surgery, announced the launch of its new centre at Hyderabad and hinted at setting up more centres across the country. Mr N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, inaugurated the Beams centre. “Beams hospitals were conceptualised to provide its patients a comfortable and painless way of treating any surgical procedures through minimal access surgery,” Dr Rakesh Sinha, Managing Director, Beams Hospitals, said in a statement.

[rizwan3]

http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfee...ad/552761.html

SleepCare launches facility in Hyderabad
PTI | 08:01 PM,Jan 27,2011

Hyderabad, Jan 27 (PTI) SleepCare Solutions (SCS), a Hyderabad-based sleep solutions enterprise today launched its first SleepCare facility at Banjara Hills in collaboration with Philips Healthcare. Announcing the launch of its operations, SCS Managing Director Dr Lavanya Gali, who is also a specialist in the area of sleep medicine told reporters that SleepCare is a dedicated facility that offers diagnosis and treatment of adult sleep disorders using the latest technology and therapeutic options. She said there are 84 types of sleep disorders and insufficient sleep is becoming common in India due to lifestyle modifications, adding "We will work with organisations towards doing research on sleep disorders among the Indian population." Speaking about SleepCare plans, its Director, Corporate Development, Prashant Koirala said, "Our goal is to launch 25 new centres in the next two years in India, Middle East and Southeast Asia." SleepCare has invested Rs One Crore in setting up its first facility here and plans to invest Rs 20 crore during the next two years. Speaking on the occasion,Philips Healthcare, (Home Healthcare Solutions) Business Manager Satyakam Sharma said Philips a global leader in diagnostic and theraputic equipment for diagnosing and treating sleep disorders, was working on creating awareness in the public on the sleep disorders. "We are also working towards making affordable devices that are presently brought from the manufacturing plants of Philips in the United States "

[rizwan3]

http://www.pharmabiz.com/NewsDetails...id=61078&sid=1

Sai Advantium plans to set up two formulation manufacturing facilities in AP
Hyderabad
Friday, February 04, 2011

Sai Advantium, Hyderabad-based one of the leading players in the Contract Research And Manufacturing Services (CRAMS) segment, is planning to set up two formulation manufacturing facilities in Andhra Pradesh.

The planned-facilities are likely to come up in Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. However, the company is yet to finalise locations for the same. Besides, the company has not yet finalised investments for the same. It is learnt that the Vizag facility will be exclusively for formulations. The company, which is currently doing formulation development for its various customers, is planning to get into formulation manufacturing in a big way with the opening of these two planned-facilities.

Speaking to Pharmabiz, Krishna Kanumuri, chief operating officer of Sai Advantium, said, “We want to provide integrated services to the customers under one roof. Currently we are doing research, biological and animal studies, formulation development and manufacturing.”

The company’s main focus, with five facilities of various nature is on regulated markets such as the US, the UK and Japan. The company said that it is more focused on high values and most of its customers are innovator companies from these regulated markets.

According to the company, it recovered quickly from the economic slowdown thanks to the good relation it maintained with customers and is registering 30 per cent annual growth for the last two years. It is expecting to register a growth rate of 30 per cent to 50 per cent in the next three years.

The company’s Research and Development (R&D) centre, which is coming up in the IKP Knowledge Park at Genome Valley in Hyderabad, will be completed by June this year. Currently the company is having manpower strength of 900 people and out of it 750 are scientists. It is planning to increase it to 1100 in a year’s time.

[rizwan3]

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...ow/7432517.cms

5 Feb, 2011, 07.20PM IST,PTI
Aurobindo Pharma Q3 net up 9.81 pc to Rs 188.63 cr

NEW DELHI: Drug firm Aurobindo Pharma today said its consolidated net profit rose by 9.81 per cent to Rs 188.63 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2010.

The company had a net profit of Rs 171.77 crore in the same period last fiscal, Aurobindo Pharma said in a statement.

Net sales of the company rose to Rs 1,192.20 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2010, compared to Rs 915.24 crore in the same period last fiscal.

"We continue to see a strong momentum in our formulations business with the scaling up of operations of the large formulations units in Jedcherla SEZ near Hyderabad, India and New Jersey, USA," Aurobindo Pharma Chairman Ramprasad Reddy said in a statement.

The Hyderabad-based company filed 15 abbreviated new drug applications (ANDA) during the third quarter taking the cumulative filings to 200.

Aurobindo Pharma, during the quarter, has also filed 54 dossier filings in Europe, taking the cumulative filings to 906.

Last month, the company had announced to divest nearly 80 per cent of its stake in its loss-making Chinese subsidiary Aurobindo (Datong) Bio Pharma Co Ltd (ADBPL) to China National Pharmaceutical Group Corporation (Sinopharm).

"We have recently unlocked our non-core asset in China having a positive impact on our profitability and cash flows," it added.

[rizwan3]

http://www.business-standard.com/ind...t-drug/424250/

BBIL starts Phase III trial of heart drug
BS Reporter / Chennai/ Hyderabad February 07, 2011, 0:52 IST

Hyderabad-based biopharmaceutical company Bharat Biotech International Limited (BBIL) announced that it had initiated Phase III trial of THR-100 in India in patients suffering from acute myocardial infarction (AMI or heart attack).

The company intends to recruit about 120 patients for the trial that is expected to be completed in the second half of 2011. The global market size for the vaccine is estimated to be around $1 billion.

In December 2006, BBIL entered into a license agreement with ThromboGenics, a Belgium-based biopharmaceutical company, for the manufacture, clinical development and commercialisation of the new vaccine.

THR-100 is being developed as a replacement for established thrombolytics, such as streptokinase and urokinase, in developing markets. It is a novel variant of Recombinant Staphylokinase, a thrombolytic agent developed by ThromboGenics for the treatment of AMI and other vascular diseases, based on its ability to dissolve blood clots.

The results of the Phase III trial will pave the way for the vaccine to be filed for marketing approval with Indian regulatory authorities

[rockystone]

ConJoin Changes Name to Anthelio; Company Launches World Class SEZ Facility in Hyderabad, Sets Aggressive Hiring Goals

The ConJoin Group, which recently acquired PHNS, the leading independent provider of comprehensive healthcare information technology (“IT”) services and business process solutions in the U.S., today announced that effective immediately it is changing its name to Anthelio.

The new name reflects the broadening of the company's services portfolio and a reinvigorated go-to-market strategy focused on providing hospitals with innovative ways to use technology and re-engineered business processes to improve patient care, streamline operations and achieve significant cost advantages.

Anthelio will leverage U.S. domain and clinical expertise converged with a truly integrated global delivery model to provide innovative, market leading, high value, low cost solutions to the provider market. This model will fundamentally transform the cost structure for hospitals, allowing them to allocate critical resources to improve patient care.

Concurrently, Anthelio announced that it has acquired a 50,000 square foot DLF-SEZ facility in a world-class Special Economic Zone in Gachibowli, Hyderabad. The facility is equipped with state of the art security and processing equipment, and will support aggressive hiring goals in India. Anthelio currently has approximately 50 people in Hyderabad and 250 people in Mumbai. The Company expects to ramp to more than 1000 people in India by end of the year 2011, more than 3,000 people by end of 2012, and up to 15,000 people by 2015. In the U.S., the Company expects to grow from 1,300 people currently, to between 3,000 and 5,000 people by 2015.

"Our new corporate identity reflects a renewed commitment to transform the fundamental economics of the U.S. healthcare system, which includes building out our vital infrastructure and talent pool in India to help hospitals meet unprecedented technology, operational and financial challenges,” said Richard S. Garnick, Chief Executive Officer of Anthelio. “We are focused on building global teams that are laser focused on the healthcare market, and will pair clinical and domain expertise with our significant global infrastructure to create a distinct competitive advantage from other technology providers in our space.”

“When I founded ConJoin in 2008, we had no revenues and only four employees. We’ve since grown to more than 300 people in India, and now have 1,300 employees in the U.S., and total combined revenues exceeding $250 million. Our name change today will kick off our next phase of growth, and I look forward to further building out our resources in India as we continue to expand into the healthcare IT market,” added Mr. Garnick.

“The U.S. healthcare market faces a multitude of business, operational and technology challenges that will require a fundamentally new approach. The Industry has to re-engineer basic business processes and underlying technology to streamline operations, and manage costs,” said Viswanath (Vish) Sivaswamy, Managing Director, India and Global Corporate Strategy of Anthelio. “We continue to explore innovative ways to bend the cost-curve in the U.S. healthcare sector and need to position ourselves for this significant challenge and growing market opportunity by building out our talent base in Hyderabad and Mumbai.”

Anthelio recently received the NASSCOM Corporate Award for Excellence in Gender Inclusivity in the Emerging Companies category for its efforts creating a culture in which women employees are supported and encouraged to seek and achieve their fullest potential and advance to leadership positions. NASSCOM awards companies which have implemented outstanding practices that promote gender empowerment and women leadership development.

Anthelio is actively recruiting women at senior level positions, who are committed to providing unmatched client service and unique offerings to the healthcare IT industry.

[Prodigist]

US Pharmacopeia setting up $15-mn facility in Hyd

The United States Pharmacopeia (USP), an official public standards-setting authority for all prescription and over-the-counter medicines and other healthcare products, is setting up a new facility at the Genome Valley (ICICI Knowledge Park) on the outskirts of Hyderabad with an investment of $15 million (approximately Rs 68 crore).

“The new 110,000-sft building that we are constructing on 4.5-acre land will be our ‘second home’. The completion of the building is expected by the end of April 2011 and we are working out the logistics of the inauguration date, which is likely to take place by the end of August or beginning of September,” V Srini Srinivasan, head (USP international sites and USP global verification programmes.

The facility will be the largest site for USP outside the US. It will house analytical research and development, micro-biology, micro-analytical and organic synthetic chemistry labs, besides boosting facilities to conduct training programmes. The organisation has been operating from a 10,000-sft leased space in Hyderabad since the last five years.

Outlining the objective behind expanding its India operations, Srinivasan, who is responsible for USP’s international sites in India, China and Brazil, said India offered a lot of opportunities for USP in many ways. “We started as a collaborative testing laboratory in Hyderabad. It is a service that we want to provide to the USP's headquarters in Washington. But we soon found that the site is beginning to grow on its own. It has gone beyond that today.”

Roughly 35 per cent of the drugs that are imported into the US comes from India. USP's main customers (users) for its reference standards and USP books are all in India, accounting for 10-12 per cent of the organisation's global customers, he said.

Stating that there was a natural synergy between USP and the Indian pharmaceutical industry in the development and establishment of public standards of the latter's drugs, Srinivasan said the organisation was expanding its certification activities in the country, not just for India but also involving several other countries in the world. “Hyderabad will be our central location for providing certification services.”

From 15 personnel five years ago, USP’s Hyderabad site grew to 100 now (excluding the 45 building maintenance staff). With the 110,000-sft facility in place, Srinivasan said, the organisation would grow by an equal number here in the course of one year or so.