New Market Report: The Future of R&D Outsourcing

Feb. 23, 2010 - PRLog -- For several years, drug developers have been under intense pressure to introduce new products in an environment of escalating R&D costs, blockbuster patent expiration and resulting generic competition, increasingly complex science, heightened regulatory scrutiny, and other pressures. The global economic meltdown has exacerbated these challenges with new R&D staff and budget reductions. In order to remain competitive, drug makers must now do more with less. Outsourcing, particularly to low cost offshore venues like India and China, offers a means to maintain productivity within new cost parameters.

However, while some drug makers have optimized their R&D outsourcing methodologies and have developed sophisticated processes to select, monitor and manage a wide range of projects, many other R&D outsourcing projects fail due to poor planning on the part of sponsors. A large proportion of these failures could be averted as many of the most common reasons for failure are preventable problems relating to R&D outsourcing strategy, supplier evaluation & selection, contracting, project organization and expectations, supplier management, culture, staff turnover and intellectual property.

Key features of this report

* Discussion of the factors leading to current imperatives to increased outsourced R&D.
* Detailed descriptions of both effective and ineffective R&D outsourcing approaches.
* In depth analysis of the types of different R&D outsourcing relationships, their advantages and disadvantages.
* 5 case studies that illustrate R&D outsourcing best practices.
* Comprehensive discussion of offshore R&D outsourcing, particularly focusing on India and China.

Scope of this report

* Understand the driving forces behind R&D outsourcing.
* Save time and money with the report's succinct compilation and analysis of current R&D outsourcing  trends.
* Learn how R&D outsourcing will evolve over the next several years and why.
* Assess your competitive position vis-à-vis other drug makers and learn about R&D outsourcing best  practices via detailed case studies.

Key Market Issues

(1) Although cost cutting has previously not been a concern for R&D departments, the current economic environment has brought expense reduction programs into research labs. Most of the leading drug makers have recently undertaken and/or are currently in the midst of broad R&D cost cutting programs

(2) Because drug makers must continue to introduce new products, maintaining high productivity is key. R&D outsourcing offers a means to achieve this, particularly via low cost offshore outsourcing.

(3) Most R&D outsourcing programs do not focus on a single approach but include several different types of relationships with contractors. The savviest drug makers combine these approaches in a well thought-out, synergistic manner while many others will implement them in a slipshod, ineffective fashion that results in high project failure rates.

Key findings from this report

(1) Usage of CROs will rise by 9.9% annually through 2014 with the greatest growth in Phase IIIb and IV testing at 13.8% per year.
(2) While the  top 10 CROs account for more than half of all R&D outsourcing, more than 1,000 others comprise the remaining 44%.
(3) Offshore outsourcing, particularly to India and China, offers cost savings of 30% to 60% compared to the US and Western Europe.
(4)  The 100 Indian CROs tend to be larger and more focused on clinical trials while the 300 Chinese CROs are smaller and many are building strong pre-clinical capabilities.

Key questions answered

* Why is R&D outsourcing rising?
* Which types of R&D outsourcing approaches are currently most common?
* Which forms of R&D cost cutting will increase most in the future?

For more information or to purchase this report, go to:
-  http://www.fastmr.com/prod/51109_the_future_of_rd_outsour...

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