Digital transformation and personalised medicine are reshaping PharmaChem
Ireland's PharmaChem industry comprises more than 90 biopharmaceutical, pharmaceutical and chemical companies, including eight of the world's top 10 Biopharma companies. The sector contributes about 20 per cent to Ireland's GDP, and generates more than €116 billion annually in exports.
Ireland ranks as the world's third-largest pharmaceutical exporter and is Europe's second-largest exporter of complex pharmaceutical goods and medicines. The sector supports more than 80,000 jobs and has attracted more than €10 billion in foreign direct investment over the past decade.
Today Ireland's biopharmaceutical and chemical industries stand at a critical juncture, with opportunities for growth alongside several pressing challenges.
Since 2014 the
Pharma Industry Awards
, organised by Business River, have celebrated outstanding achievements by individuals and organisations that set new standards in the pharmaceutical industry. The annual awards event attracts hundreds of industry professionals, some of whom reflect here on trends over the past decade and what the future holds.
READ MORE
Emmeline Yuen-O'Sullivan, senior enterprise account executive at
Aizon
, identifies digital transformation as the most notable shift in pharmaceutical manufacturing optimisation over the past decade. 'As pharma manufacturing grows more complex, this transformation has laid the groundwork for the next phase of intelligent, real-time decision-making,' she says.
Susan Costello, network director at
BioPharmaChem Skillnet
, points to the shift towards advanced and personalised therapies as the most transformative trend. 'The emergence of mRNA vaccines and cell and gene therapies has redefined our sector,' Costello observes. 'This evolution has not only reshaped manufacturing but also created a pressing need for upskilling and workforce development.'
For Clodagh Phelan, marketing specialist at
Camida
, the rise of strategic partnerships across the supply chain is one of the most impactful trends. 'At Camida, we've seen how collaboration between manufacturers, suppliers and logistic partners has driven resilience, innovation and accelerated time-to-market,' says Ms Phelan.
Victor Vargas, commercial director and strategic lead at
QuickStat, A Kuehne+Nagel Company
, notes that personalised medicine is experiencing a boom, with projected annual growth exceeding 10 per cent until 2032. 'QuickStat together with Kuehne Nagel has heavily invested in the necessary infrastructure to enable trade and continuous supply,' he adds.
Jimmy Blaney, group vice-president, and director business development and marketing, at
Asgard Cleanroom Solutions
, comments that the BioPharma sector has been revolutionised by the shift from traditional construction methods to off-site modular approaches.
'These advantages are especially clear when navigating potential tariffs and supply-chain constraints, where consolidated off-site production lessens cross-border complexities,' Blaney explains.
Over the past decade, gas detection technologies have undergone substantial advancements, particularly regarding the integration of connected technologies, according to Rebecca Keogh, business development manager at
OBW Technologies
.
'Traditional gas detectors have been replaced by more sophisticated systems that can communicate with other devices and software monitoring systems, enabling real-time data collection and sharing,' Ms Keogh adds.
The view from trade organisation
BioPharmaChem Ireland
is that there is untapped potential for Ireland's life sciences sector to move up the value chain, leveraging research capabilities in biotechnologies, microbiome science, advanced materials, drug delivery and data analytics.
Pharma Industry Awards by the numbers
To maintain competitiveness, the sector's strategy is shifting towards several key themes. Advanced Therapeutics represents a big focus area, alongside expanded Global Business Services capabilities. The lobby group has identified development of the indigenous Biotech sector as crucial for creating a more resilient ecosystem.
In addition, growing Contract Development and Manufacturing Organisations (CDMOs) and accelerating digitalisation across the sector are strategic priorities for BioPharmaChem Ireland members.
Vargas believes that a trend shaping the pharmaceutical industry in the coming years will be the heightened focus on developing robust and specialised logistics infrastructure.
'By investing in state-of-the-art logistics solutions, companies like QuickStat are enabling the efficient and safe handling of sensitive pharmaceutical products, ensuring that Ireland remains at the forefront of pharmaceutical innovation and patient care for years to come,' he says.
Blaney expects that sustainable building practices, digital integration and agile production techniques will dominate the industry's future.
'Growing demand for personalised therapies and stringent regulations will require adaptable, high-spec facilities, ensuring off-site construction remains a truly disruptive force in BioPharma's future,' says Blaney.
Phelan is of the view that sustainability and supply chain transparency will define the next era in the industry. 'Pharmaceutical companies are increasingly seeking partners who align with ESG goals, ensuring ethical sourcing, reduced environmental impact and data-driven visibility throughout the supply chain.'
Yuen-O'Sullivan expects digital transformation to accelerate, with artificial intelligence adoption progressing from isolated experiments to widespread, in-process implementation under GxP conditions. 'Lightweight AI-powered tools will enable faster deployment of digital solutions, making advanced, real-time analytics more accessible,' she says.
Keogh predicts that integration of gas detectors with cloud-based systems will enhance centralised data analysis, reporting and management.
'Progress in sensor technology will focus on improving the portability, versatility, and accuracy of gas detection devices. Innovations such as AI and machine learning integration in sensors will increase accuracy and pattern detection,' says Keogh.
Costello also believes that digitalisation and sustainability will be important trends going forward and she stresses the crucial importance of ensuring companies have robust talent strategies in place.
In its 2023-2027 strategy document, BioPharmaChem Ireland called for a national strategy to identify future talent requirements and position Ireland as the global location of choice for Global Business Services. The document suggested that the government should establish an 'Office for Life Sciences' to co-ordinate these efforts. The strategy emphasises the development of project management and customer relationship management skills, as well as digital skills.
In the report, Matt Moran, director of BioPharmaChem Ireland, commented: 'Ireland has benefited greatly from the growth of biologics, pharmaceuticals and chemicals industries and I believe that the best is yet to come.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
37 minutes ago
- Irish Times
Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary hits €100m bonus target
Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary has qualified for share options worth more than €100 million after the airline's shares hit a key performance target, paving the way for one of the biggest payouts in European corporate history. Shares this week closed at more than €21 for a 28th consecutive day, meeting one of two conditions attached to Mr O'Leary's bumper pay deal. The 64-year-old will have to stay at Ryanair until the end of July 2028 to collect the share options – worth more than €111 million – as part of an incentive scheme agreed in 2019. Mr O'Leary, known for his pugnacious style, defended his potential windfall earlier this month after Ryanair reported a fall in full-year profits. [ Ryanair's sky-high gains fuel O'Leary's bonus ambitions Opens in new window ] [ O'Leary flies closer to €100m pay-day Opens in new window ] 'I think we're delivering exceptional value for Ryanair shareholders in an era when premiership footballers or the managers are getting paid €20 million to €25 million a year,' he said. READ MORE Ryanair shareholders, he added, were 'getting particular value out of our share options – both mine and the rest of the management team'. Mr O'Leary said that as the options would not vest for another three years, he and the 'rest of the management team have to stay here to 2028 and continue to deliver before we can actually get hold of those share options'. 'So they don't come around for another three years and a lot can happen between now and then,' he added. Mr O'Leary also signalled he could stay at the airline when his current contract expired in 2028. 'My contract runs out in 2028 and there'll have to be some discussion I presume with the board as to how my remuneration will be fixed from 2028 onwards, if they want me to stay on after 2028,' he said. Mr O'Leary's potential pay deal compares with that of József Váradi, boss of low-cost rival Wizz Air, who stands to earn £100 million if that airline's share price hits £120 by 2028. But Wizz Air has previously conceded that this was unlikely to be met with the shares trading well below that level. Bumper pay packages are more common in the US. GE Aerospace chief executive Larry Culp received $89 million in 2024, making him one of the highest-paid US executives. Some European companies, including the London Stock Exchange Group, have been pushing for higher pay rewards for their executives. Since becoming chief executive of Ryanair in 1994, Mr O'Leary has masterminded the airline's breakneck growth as it has grown from a small regional airline into a force in global aviation. The airline has cemented its position as the undisputed leader in European low-cost aviation after using the disruption caused by the pandemic to increase its market share as weaker rivals retrenched. Mr O'Leary receives a basic salary of €1.2 million a year, but also owns a stake in Ryanair worth about €930 million. Under the scheme agreed in 2019, he was granted the options to buy 10 million shares at €11.12 each if either the airline's share price hit €21 for 28 consecutive days, or it reported €2.2 billion in annual profits after tax any time up to 2028. Ryanair said: 'If the share price remains above €21 until close of play on Thurs 29 May, then the 28-day share price condition will have been met. However, this is only one of two conditions for the share options to vest.' – Copyright The Financial Times Limited
Irish Times
39 minutes ago
- Irish Times
No jail term for ‘neighbour from hell' who lay in wait to pull out woman's hair
A 'neighbour from hell' caught on CCTV attacking a woman by pulling out her hair has avoided a jail term. Belinda Daly (60) pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to one count of assault causing harm to her neighbour in the front garden of her home on Windmill Avenue in Crumlin, Dublin, on February 28th, 2021. The court heard there was a long-standing disagreement between the neighbours over a minor falling-out between other members of their families. In CCTV footage taken from Daly's home on the day in question, she can be seen reaching over the garden wall and grabbing her neighbour's hair. READ MORE Daly has no previous convictions, prosecuting barrister Marc Thompson told the court. In a victim-impact statement, read out previously, the injured party told the court Daly was 'a neighbour from hell'. 'Even today, I'm still terrified, afraid of being attacked again,' she said, adding that she had frequent thoughts of 'the evil unleashed on me.' The woman suffered alopecia of the scalp, with hair loss extending to seven centimetres across her head due to 'the ferocity of the attack', her GP wrote in a letter to the court. She has to have regular nerve-blocking injections to her neck and is on daily pain medication, the court heard. She suffers frequent migraines, has post-traumatic stress disorder, severe anxiety and intermittent nose bleeds. Defence counsel Brian Storan said his client regrets and takes full responsibility for her behaviour. The court heard Daly had two adult children and a grandchild. She has spent time working in domestic violence shelters. Defence counsel said Daly was struggling with anxiety issues related to her work at the time of the assault. Sentencing Daly on Friday, Judge Orla Crowe said there was clearly a long history between the parties with 'a lot of bad blood'. This was a very significant outbreak of violence, and, no matter what was going on, nothing justified Daly's shameful behaviour. The judge said Daly had 'lain in wait' for her neighbour, and the level of force used was noteworthy. She noted the parties were no longer neighbours, as the victim's house went on the market before the assault. Judge Crowe imposed a sentence of two years but suspended it in full for three years. The judge ordered Daly not to have contact with her former neighbour.
Irish Times
an hour ago
- Irish Times
Almost one-in-eight children live with one parent, CSO survey finds
Almost one-in-eight children in Ireland live with one parent , new data from a Central Statistics Office (CSO) survey of 10,000 households shows. The study draws on findings from the longitudinal Growing Up in Ireland (GUI) survey, which followed a group of children born in 2008 – known as 'cohort '08″ – who will be turning 17 this year. Data analysed in this report was collected when the children were three years old. Almost 10,000 households with a three-year-old child were interviewed as part of the survey. Of the 9,793 interviewed, 12 per cent of 'primary-resident' parents reported that their child had another parent who was not living with them, or a 'non-resident parent'. READ MORE A 'non-resident parent' refers to a parent of a child who did not live at the child's primary address at the time of data collection, while 'primary-resident parent' refers to the parent living with the child at the time of the interview who provided most care to the child. Contact details were provided for almost 400 non-resident parents, with responses obtained from 137 of them. All of them were men. Non-resident parents whose contact details were not provided lived further away from their child and had reduced daily contact with their child. They also had decreased rates of providing financial support to the primary-resident parent and reduced frequency of contact with that parent. They had less positive relationships with primary parent than those for whom the primary parent did provide contact details, according to that parent. Half of non-resident parents reported living with the mother of the three-year-old when she became pregnant with the child, while four-in-10 said they spoke about the child with the primary parent every day. Of the 137 non-resident parents who responded, 60.6 per cent said they paid nothing towards the rent or mortgage due on the home where their child was primarily resident. Three-quarters said they provided regular financial support (other than direct mortgage or rent payments) to the primary-resident parent. Three-in-10 primary-resident parents who provided contact details for the non-resident parent reported that the non-resident parent never provided any financial contribution towards the household and maintenance of the child. That figure doubled for those who did not provide contact details. Some 35 per cent of non-resident parents felt they had a lot of influence on big decisions concerning their three-year-old, such as decisions regarding healthcare. Some 51.8 per cent of non-resident parents reported spending more than seven nights with the three-year-old in a typical month, while 47.4 per cent reported that the length of a typical contact occasion with the child was 24 hours or more. Of the primary-resident parents who provided contact details, almost four-in-10 reported that the other parent had daily contact with the child.
