CPHI Americas 2025: Navigating Complexities with Strategic Partnerships
The Pharma Navigator discusses the increasingly complex therapeutic landscape and how strategic partnerships can be beneficial with Dr. Srinivasan Shanmugam from Adare, and finds out more about the company’s plans for CPHI Americas with Steven Facer, Senior Vice President, Global Sales and Marketing.
The focus of the bio/pharmaceutical industry has shifted in recent years and led to greater development of more complex therapies that require intricate expertise for successful development and manufacture (1). As a result of this shifting landscape, bio/pharma innovators of all sizes are relying on service-providers to assist with their development and manufacturing needs.
According to market research, the increasingly complex therapeutic pipeline as well as insufficient in-house manufacturing capabilities and capacities are driving growth in the global CDMO market, which is forecast to increase by a rate of 8.5% annually between 2024 and 2032 (2). In a panel discussion, taking place at CPHI Americas, industry experts will delve into strategic partnerships and how these can be useful for companies to negotiate the new therapeutic setting.
To gain some further insights into this panel discussion and the wider subject of strategic partnerships, The Pharma Navigator spoke with Dr. Srinivasan Shanmugam, Executive Director, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Business Support, and New Technologies, Adare Pharma Solutions, who is participating in the event. Additionally, Steven Facer, Senior Vice President, Global Sales and Marketing, Adare Pharma Solutions, provided a rundown of what the company is looking forward to at CPHI Americas.
Navigating a Complex Landscape
TPN: Could you provide a quick snapshot of what visitors to the event can look forward to during the panel discussion you will be participating in on May 20, 2025 at CPHI Americas?
Shanmugam: There’s a lot of complexity in the pharma world right now, and companies are under real pressure to accelerate development, scale up efficiently, and streamline manufacturing. On this panel — ‘Tackling Pharmaceutical Pain Points Through Strategic Partnerships’ taking place on Tuesday, May 20, from 12:15 pm to 1:45 pm in Room 201A — my industry colleagues and I will explore how strategic partnerships can help pharma companies navigate complexity in this ever-changing landscape. Working with the right CDMO gives sponsors access to specialized expertise and flexible capacity, which can help reduce risk and build a resilient supply chain. I’m excited to talk about how sponsor and CDMOs can find smart, innovative ways to work together and bring better therapies to patients, faster.
A Strategic Benefit
TPN: Going into the topic in a bit more detail, why are strategic partnerships so beneficial for the pharma industry? How do they help overcome difficult ‘pain points’ etc?
Shanmugam: Strategic partnerships allow companies to focus on their strengths while tapping into the capabilities of a trusted partner. In pharma, the challenges—from development timelines to supply chain constraints and manufacturing hurdles—are too complex for any one organization to solve alone. That’s why a strong outsourcing partnership is so important: an effective CDMO can offer sponsors knowledge, experience, flexibility, and infrastructure needed to keep programs on track, even when conditions shift unexpectedly.
It's a collaborative relationship where both sides are aligned on goals, quality, and long-term success. Building a partnership like that requires that both sides be engaged in the process and communicating openly. This is crucial to stay ahead of challenges, adjust strategies, and keep the project moving. In a fast-paced and often unpredictable pharma landscape, this kind of collaboration can be the difference between a slow, drawn-out commercialization process and a streamlined path to market.
A Chance to Connect
TPN: Aside from your panel discussion, what are you looking forward to experiencing at CPHI Americas?
Shanmugam: What I’m most looking forward to is the chance to connect with so many different parts of the industry all in one place. CPHI Americas brings together representatives from the entire pharmaceutical supply chain under one roof, which makes it really valuable for a company like Adare, which provides end-to-end services from development to commercial manufacturing that allow us to seamlessly scale and commercialize complex products across our global and regional manufacturing capabilities.
Supporting and Engaging with Industry
TPN: What is Adare most looking forward to at CPHI Americas this year?
Facer: Adare is excited about exhibiting at CPHI Americas, especially with the event taking place in Philadelphia, a vital and fast-growing hub for life sciences. As a global CDMO headquartered in Philly, we’re proud to support and engage with the industry in a city that plays such a key role in shaping its future. CPHI Americas brings together pharma professionals, innovators, and companies of all sizes to connect, collaborate, and explore what’s next in pharmaceutical development.
We’re looking forward to meeting with companies who are seeking a development and manufacturing partner with a strong global and regional presence. With seven facilities in the world’s two largest pharmaceutical markets, the U.S. and Europe, Adare offers regional access, supply chain flexibility, and the operational resilience needed to keep projects moving forward.
With over 65 products developed and manufactured for our customers, Adare has extensive experience executing smooth, efficient tech transfers, both for products in development and for commercialized therapies needing a new manufacturing partner. Whether customers are launching a new product or optimizing supply of an established product, we can provide the technical depth, regulatory expertise, and operational flexibility to meet evolving needs and ensure long-term success.
TPN: Are there any innovations/is there big news that Adare will be showcasing at this year’s event?
Facer: In collaboration with Laxxon Medical, Adare Pharma Solutions is now providing 3D screen printing capabilities to our customers. This technology represents a transformative opportunity for drug development by enabling complex drug delivery systems that simply can't be achieved via traditional methods.
3D screen printing is a scalable, additive manufacturing process that facilitates precise, layer-by-layer construction of drug formulations. This allows integration of immediate, extended, delayed, and sequential release mechanisms within a single tablet. We can also use the technology to easily incorporate multiple APIs with distinct pharmacokinetic profiles into one dosage form, offering unprecedented therapeutic flexibility.
As personalized medicine and patient-centric therapies become the norm, we’re going to see 3D screen printing play a major role in helping sponsors bring smarter, more targeted products to market.
We'll also be showcasing our MMTS Minitabs technology, which combines the simplicity and high drug-loading capacity of tablets with the flexibility to deliver a wide range of release profiles tailored to both patient needs and drug characteristics.
This multiparticulate dosage form enables the delivery of dozens or even hundreds of cylindrical Minitabs (1.0–2.0 mm) in convenient formats such as capsules, sachets, or sprinkles. Each Minitab contains the API and excipients enclosed within specialized polymer coatings that precisely control drug dissolution and diffusion.
Supported by Adare’s robust commercial-scale manufacturing capabilities and validated clinical performance, MMTS Minitabs can help overcome key formulation challenges, including dose precision, patient compliance, and therapeutic efficacy.
TPN: Where can visitors find Adare at the event? What is the booth number etc.?
Facer: Visitors to CPHI Americas can find Adare at booth #1312. Dr. Srinivasan Shanmugam, Adare’s Executive Director of Pharmaceutical Sciences, will be participating in the panel discussion ‘Tackling Pharmaceutical Pain Points Through Strategic Partnerships’ on Tuesday, May 20, from 12:15 pm to 1:45 pm in Room 201A.
References
Hayek, M.; Schroeter, I.; Mathew, S.; et al. Navigating Toward New Horizons in Pharma Operations: The End-to-End Transformation Imperative. Kearney.com, Article, June 11, 2024.
Fortune Business Insights. Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) Market Size, Share & Industry Analysis, by Service, and Regional Forecast, 2024–2032. Market Research Report, April 2025.
MMTS™ Minitabs is a trademark of Adare Pharma Solutions
Photo by Mick Haupt on Unsplash