Yann d’Hervé Head of Health Care, Business Line EVONIK
What is the role of Evonik Healthcare after the firm’s recent restructuring?
Evonik reorganized into two segments as of April 1st, 2025: Advanced Technology and Custom Solutions. Eight out of Evonik’s 14 business lines, including Health Care, are part of the Custom Solutions segment. The role of Health Care is to enable pharmaceutical companies to innovate to save lives, perfectly complementing the Custom Solutions purpose.
Evonik is transforming its Health Care business to become a system solutions provider, growing in core areas of expertise such as complex and highly potent APIs, oral and injectable drug delivery, and precision biosolutions like lipids for mRNA and gene delivery and cell culture ingredients. Our transformation is progressing well, and we are convinced that this path will enable our pharmaceutical partners and customers to innovate for longer and healthier lives. How is Evonik leveraging its CDMO capabilities to accelerate drug development?
In recent years, many new technologies have been scaled up and commercialized such as mRNA and siRNA-based drugs. Evonik’s CDMO capabilities are being put to work to accelerate the development of these technologies.
Evonik leverages its Drug Substance CDMO expertise and capacities in organic synthesis and chromatographic purification in order to scale up and produce customized lipids in cGMP quality. How has Evonik strengthened its healthcare presence in North America?
In Tippecanoe, Indiana, we operate one of the largest drug substance manufacturing sites in the US, which now grown into a world-class CDMO with small molecule and fermentation capabilities. In Vancouver, Canada, we acquired Transferra Nanosciences in 2016 to develop lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) and liposomal formulations. In Birmingham, Alabama, since the acquisition of SurModics Pharmaceuticals in 2011, we offer fully integrated complex drug product injectable capabilities. More recently, in 2024, Evonik opened a healthcare innovation satellite in Boston, Mass. to be closer to one of the world’s largest biotech hubs.
Marion Kuhn Vice President, Global Business Management BASF PHARMA SOLUTIONS
Can you detail advancements and milestones reached for BASF Pharma in 2024?
With the launch of new products for biopharmaceutical applications, including Kolliphor® P 188 Cell Culture and Kollipro™ Urea Granules, we strengthen our commitment to providing the biologics market high quality raw materials that fit their manufacturing needs and reduce raw material variability.
Digitalization is a continuing focus to help our customers develop and manufacture drugs more efficiently. In 2024, we expanded our digital offer with the introduction of a new premium account option for our Virtual Pharma Assistants, which further enhances the user experience. How do BASF’s products help overcome challenges in raw material consistency and enhance efficiency in downstream processing?
Raw material variability has been a challenge in bioprocessing since its inception. This variability can not only impact cell performance but also alter the final composition of the drug product, leading to compliance issues and regulatory challenges.
Poloxamer 188, a synthetic polymer integral to chemically-defined media as a shear protectant, has been subject to lot-to-lot variability. Our product, Kolliphor® P188 Bio, offers exceptional shear protection for mammalian cells. Through ongoing research into the mode-of-action of poloxamer 188, we discovered that certain cells involved in more intensive bioprocesses benefit from a lower molecular weight poloxamer 188. Kolliphor® P188 Cell Culture consistently falls within the lower molecular weight range of the polymer. Both products address the issue of lot-to-lot variability effectively, as BASF has adopted advanced manufacturing practices and rigorous release testing protocols to ensure consistency. How is BASF collaborating with industry partners to drive innovation in the pharmaceutical sector?
BASF has established partnerships with Cytiva, the Bioprocessing Training and Education Center at North Carolina State University, and the National Cancer Institute. These collaborations drive biopharma innovation by developing new biopharmaceutical ingredients, optimizing existing products to better suit customer applications, and advancing scientific understanding of raw materials to enhance industry knowledge.