If anyone thought drug manufacturing had shed its "stepchild" status within the industry, a recent survey suggests that many pharma companies still view drug manufacturing operations as a cost center, rather than a potential source of value and profitability.
(Aren't marketing and sales are the real cost centers?)
Results also suggest that some companies may sing the praises of "quality by design," but fail to walk the talk, disappointing when you consider that inefficient manufacturing is estimated to waste over $50 billion per year, money that could go to incubating new discoveries and funding R&D.
For more on this, and comments from leading analysts including business professor Jeffrey Liker and Tefen's partner Avi Edelstein, read Bill Swichtenberg's feature on op ex.
(The parallels with the publishing industry are striking. "Content development" (the bland new industry term for editorial) is often defined as a cost center, and sales the profit center. Which always leads to the chicken/egg question: what would there be to sell if there were no "content?")
