Pharma prospers with CPHI Worldwide attracting a record 42,000 attendees, as new industry trends emerge

Executives emphasised the importance of being first to market, two distinct outsourcing strategies, with biopharm and HPAPIs segments reporting strong growth.

The world’s largest pharma event is a mecca of new trends, industry deals and insights – over 80% of attendance is international, with over 7,000 people travelling from China and India alone. This year, CPHI Worldwide delegates were in a confident mood, with growth looking strong in all segments of the industry. In particular, Big Pharma delegates emphasised the need to be first to market to maximise profit opportunities – now a key consideration when selecting a CMO. In generics and APIs, Western players reported undertaking high-margin products with complex chemistries, with India and China showing accelerated growth thanks to the continued rise in global use and universal healthcare systems.

CPHI Worldwide attributes the impressive increase in attendance to its enhanced reputation as a meeting ground for pharma businesses, inclusive of new market segments – the event had over 120,000 connections within its unique Live Pharma Connect (meet and match) service, with over 12,000 perfect matches being made ahead of the event – and its commitment to delivering high-quality content and knowledge-sharing initiatives, alongside its established trade exhibition.

In 2016, the event grew to become a five-in-one show, with the first ever Finished Dosage Formulation (FDF) event launched. An impressive 30% of the visitors attended this part of the event alone. FDF was designed to be dedicated to every aspect of the finished dosage supply chain, from Big Pharma and CMO to in/out-licensing and dossier specialists. Advanced formulations, licensing and drug delivery methods across different parts of the supply chain, have seen this part of CPHI grow quickly. Next year, it is anticipated that CPHI Worldwide will attract increasing numbers of biopharm players, as companies invest in new technologies and biosimilars – with the US market now opening up and interchangeability gradually being established.

Another major factor in the event’s continued success is its zonal layout – with outsourcing, machinery, and packaging represented by co-located ICSE, P-MEC, and Innopack respectively – all supported by Live Pharma Connect and other networking programmes that facilitated high quality meetings for all attendees. In total, CPHI Worldwide featured 19 different zones covering the entire supply chain, with bio exhibitors becoming increasingly prominent, and a further 22 country pavilions.

The Pharma Forum returned as the dedicated content hub, offering a wealth of information on trends, innovations, developments, and the latest regulatory insights; as well as providing access to the Innovation Galleries, Exhibitor Showcase, Knowledge Hub and Pharma Insights Briefings. Complementing this, the iconic Pre-Connect Congress celebrated its 8th edition with sessions on contract services, packaging, FDF, global API production, biosimilars and high potent APIs amongst those featured.

For more than 4 years, CPHI Worldwide has also delivered comprehensive analysis on a selection of different pharmaceutical markets, ranging from the US to China. CPHI Worldwide 2016 saw the publication of the 4th CPHI Annual Report: Prospects, Analysis and Trends in Global Pharma, which prophesised the emergence of 3D printed formulations, patented products in China and need to properly define continuous processing methods.

Finally, in the celebration of global pharmaceutical industry, the revamped CPHI Pharma Awards took on a new focus, bestowing recognition to companies and innovative products through the 13 awards presented this year, five more than in 2015.

“CPHI Worldwide in Barcelona has exceeded all expectations, the event was a massive success with the launch of FDF and achieved a record-breaking attendance overall. It's a real magnet of everything Pharma, and key indicator of the industry’s overall strength. Having over 42,000 attendees is a great achievement and shows the esteemed regard with which it is held globally. In the last few years, we have brought in an increased and enriched content, and more parts of the supply chain in response to the changes in the pharma industry. With the Women’s Leadership Forum, the Pre-Connect and new events we are helping provide a vital platform for global industry to meet, learn and do business. What gives us most pride is that the meetings that take place at Worldwide are integral to the industry’s growth and future innovation. Next year, CPHI Worldwide will visit Europe’s biggest Pharma market once again, and we remain committed to the continuous improvement of our platforms, programmes and initiatives,” said Rutger Oudejans, Brand Director Pharma at UBM EMEA.