Observations from BPD CGT Symposium and ISPE Midwest Chapter Symposium

By Drew Carlson, Applications Development Manager

BPD CGT Symposium & Vendor Show 2022

BPD Cell and Gene Therapy Symposium & Vendor Show took place at the North Carolina Biotechnology Center, located in one of the hearts of the Biopharma and CGT space, Research Triangle Park. Being my first attendance at this show, I believe it was well attended.  The lobby and auditorium spaces were full of guests interested in the vendors and subject matter expert speakers. Industry leaders such as Novartis, Biogen, Pfizer, and many others were well represented.

BPD stands for Biomanufacturing and Process Development, so as you would imagine the talks revolved around processing improvements. Abbreviating some of the titles, they ranged from “Strategies to Improve AAV Production” to “Challenges and Opportunities in Downstream Process Development” to “Expanding to Meet Future Clinical and Commercial Demand.”  Common themes within these presentations included aspects we are all familiar with now but need to continue to improve like: single-use processing, ability to scale through development and into production, sterility and contamination assurance, leachables and extractables mitigation, etc. These are all topics and concerns that Savillex Purillex^® fluoropolymer product can alleviate.

A surprising topic of conversation I found myself having frequently after introducing Savillex product and probing applications other attendees were involved in was cell regeneration and tissue processing.  Many of the suppliers to the CGT space with medias, reagents, buffers, etc. also have customers in the tissue regeneration space. Savillex Purillex product has been found to significantly improve cell viability during storage and throughout the shipping process due to a lower leachables profile than polycarbonate or PETG bottles. These veins of conversations are ones I am going to follow more deeply.

ISPE Midwest Chapter Educational Symposium & Vendor Show

The regional ISPE symposium and vendor shows have historically been some of the best networking and knowledge-sharing events of the calendar year. However, they each take their own form based on the regional presence of companies, sponsors, and attendees. This year’s Midwest region show was in Kansas City at Arrowhead Stadium, home of the Kansas City Chiefs. It was a very cool venue and using the club-level amenities was a fun experience.

Kansas City has a strong presence of animal health focused and contract manufacturing, lead predominantly by Bohringer Ingelheim in St. Joseph and Catalent Pharma in Kansas City, respectively.  Additionally, the primary event sponsors of Sani+Matic, IPS, Emerson, and CRB really give a good perspective that this show was primarily stainless systems, automation, large skids, instrumentation, etc. focused. Although these were not disposable or single-use applications, they were still relevant applications to quality control, lab testing, and chemical compatibility that Savillex fluoropolymer products can make more robust.

The industry speakers again highlighted the facts that Biopharma manufacturing needs to continue to progress and become more efficient and cost-effective. The average cost of a treatment per year to a patient for a biologic is $10k-$30k, for a cell therapy that increases to $500k, and for a gene therapy that increases all the way to $1M. These costs are not sustainable, nor attainable, for the patients who need the treatment. A study revealed that 50% of those costs are due to labor, 25% due to capital equipment/facilities, and 25% due to the consumables required (components, chemicals, packaging, etc.). The panel speakers were very engaging and covered topics related to supply chain constraints, hiring/labor shortages, and communication practices (transparency) between suppliers and end-users, along with a few others. The highlight of those topics was the consensus that lead time of components is more important than price.

Savillex Support

Savillex’s presence at both local tradeshows shows our commitment to learning and servicing the Biopharma and CGT communities. Please reach out directly if you have something to discuss further!

Savillex can help alleviate your extreme process parameter product needs and supply you with single-use bottles, vials, jars, assemblies, or a custom solution manufactured right here in Eden Prairie, MN. We have a brand new 1,300 square ft cleanroom dedicated to single-use integration services including tubing sets and assemblies. See our website for more information or contact us at info@savillex.com. We would be happy to discuss how we can supply high-quality products to meet your exact requirements.

I look forward to seeing you at upcoming industry shows such as Tides, Interphex, ISPE Boston, Meeting on the Mesa, and others. Check back on our website for more information about where you can see Savillex products and speak to experts in fluoropolymer product solutions for CGT and Bioprocessing.