Breaking The Either-Or Paradigm Of CDMO Selection

Choosing a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) often requires “either-or” tradeoffs that divide the candidate companies into polarities of size, location and services offered. Yet a few CDMOs defy such predictable categorization – making them the ideal choice for biotech and pharma companies seeking a partnership beyond the status quo.

Introduction

Two of the most significant trends impacting the pharma/biotech industry are a growing reliance on CDMOs and consolidation of the CDMO industry. Up from US $114.018 billion in 2015 , the CDMO market size was $130.8 billion in 2018 and is projected to reach $278.98 billion by 2026. The pressures driving CDMO market growth are familiar and unrelenting: rising research and development costs, increasing regulatory scrutiny, and global pressures on pharmaceutical companies to develop more drugs for more markets simultaneously.

At the same time, the CDMO industry is rapidly consolidating, with between 30 and 60 mergers and acquisitions annually since 2015. Again, the drivers are predictable. CDMOs are under increased pressure from their clients to scale and expand their breadth of services in a global economy. While both trends can work in the client’s favor, they also make the task of choosing a CDMO more challenging – what is the best way to find a strategic development and manufacturing partner who will be around for the long term?