PHARMA PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT CREATES A SPAGHETTI
Where was the supply chain thinking?
INTRODUCTION TO THE SPAGHETTI
The diagram below shows the spaghetti supply chains that emerge from the pharmaceutical development process:
The various company business models on the top right-hand side of the diagram create the supply chains during pre-clinical and clinical development. They do not own any of the companies physically building and running the supply chains, as it has all been outsourced—development, manufacture and distribution.
WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES?
With my consulting head on, there seems to be little awareness among actors in the development process of the seminal impact decisions taken there can have on the quality, cost, and service performance of the future commercial supply chain. The focus is exclusively on producing the data required to gain regulatory approval.
The consequences can be debilitating for the future supply chain. Here are some of the problems that may have been locked-in during development:
Scarce/bespoke materials specified
Sole sourcing from far o…