DCAT Week 2026: A Future Beyond the Static Supply Chain
The push for regionalized supply chains is having an impact on the CDMO landscape, with responsiveness and flexibility now considered equally important as efficiency and scale, notes Andrea Oro from ESTEVE CDMO.
Recent global disruptions and shifting geopolitical tides have exposed the fragility of pharmaceutical supply chains, driving companies toward approaches that provide more regional resilience. In this exclusive interview with The Pharma Navigator, Andrea Oro, Managing Director for Esteve CDMO US, and Global Head of Commercial Operations and Strategy for ESTEVE CDMO, reflects on the criticality of flexibility and responsiveness to thrive in the future.
A Need for Flexibility and Responsiveness
TPN: There has been a significant push of late for increased ‘local-for-local’ manufacturing; what impact is this industry trend having on CDMOs, particularly those headquartered in Europe?
Oro: We have seen that push for increased ‘local-for-local’ manufacturing, and that trend is undoubtedly impacting the CDMO landscape. The momentum behind local manufacturing has been driven by several factors: the need to improve supply chain resilience after recent global disruptions, growing expectations from regulators and policymakers around supply security, and geopolitical pressures that are encouraging companies to diversify and derisk their supply routes. In the United States, in particular, we are seeing strong interest in reshoring or nearshoring key steps in the value chain to ensure continuity of supply for medicines, including many that are critical to patients living healthy lives.
While companies have developed different strategies to respond to this local-for-local trend, what this ultimately means is that we cannot assume supply chains will continue to operate as we intended, and can no longer be considered ‘static’. Instead, they must be designed for resilience, with an emphasis on redundancy, geographic diversification, and the ability to adapt as conditions evolve. At the same time, we recognize that change is a constant in our industry — whether it is driven by regulation, technology, or geopolitics — so responsiveness and flexibility are now as important as efficiency and scale. As a response to this, CDMOs that can quickly adapt their network, capacity, and sourcing strategies to align with customers’ evolving regional needs will be best positioned to thrive.
At ESTEVE CDMO, we have recognized the need to offer greater flexibility and to be able to adapt quickly to changes when building our capacity diversification strategy and footprint. In recent years, we have placed a strong emphasis on complementing our European heritage with targeted investments elsewhere in the world, including in the United States, so that we can support customers who require U.S.-based manufacturing for strategic, regulatory, or patient-access reasons. In practice, this has meant expanding capabilities to handle projects destined primarily for North America, while maintaining robust European capacity for global and regional supply.
Looking ahead, I see the balance between regional manufacturing and pure ‘local-for-local’ continuing to evolve, rather than shifting to one extreme. For some products there will be a stronger push for local production in key markets such as the U.S. or EU. For others, a more regional model, anchored in a resilient multisite CDMO network, will remain the most efficient and sustainable solution. The key will be to design supply strategies that are both robust and adaptable, so they can be adjusted as regulations, incentives, and market dynamics change. Ultimately, having options to respond to the cyclical nature of history has proven to be the best approach.
The Pressure of Specialized Capabilities
TPN: Conversations are also focusing on the potential bottleneck surrounding specialized capability available within industry. How are CDMOs responding to this potential issue? Are there certain actions that need to be taken sooner rather than later from your perspective to ensure patient access to medicines is not at risk?
Oro: The industry is also confronting a potential bottleneck in specialized capabilities. As pipelines shift toward more complex modalities, the demand for new technologies and specialized technical expertise is increasing faster than the available capacity or ability to support it. These trends naturally put pressure on CDMOs, which are expected to be ready with the right capabilities when customers need them.
This creates a fundamental tradeoff for CDMOs, as we often need to invest proactively in new technologies, specialized equipment, and expert teams before demand is fully visible, in order to be prepared when projects materialize. This is capital intensive and requires a clear strategic view of where the market is moving. However, customers increasingly value partners who can offer both flexibility and specialized services — partners who can manage a broad range of projects while still operating safely and efficiently at the highest levels of complexity.
In our case in particular, expanding infrastructure for specialized and more complex APIs is essential to support both local-for-local strategies and patient access to cutting-edge therapies. From my perspective, there are several actions that need to be taken sooner rather than later to avoid bottlenecks that could otherwise compromise access. These include continuing to invest in high-containment, technologies that improve a product’s bioavailability, and specialized equipment. Building and retaining highly skilled technical and quality teams remains essential, as does strengthening regulatory and quality systems to match the complexity of newer modalities. We also need to retain a focus on softer qualities, such as fostering deeper, longer-term partnerships between sponsors and CDMOs so that our investments in capacity and capabilities are aligned with real pipeline needs.
At our core, we are focused on the development and manufacture of small molecule APIs and intermediates, and clients have come to recognize the emphasis we place on quality, so, while we continue to add new technologies to keep up with the industry’s ever evolving needs, we will do this without compromising what’s important, and we are not growing indiscriminately.
Our strategy focuses on strengthening and building on existing capabilities. We support projects across multiple sites and stages of development in small molecule APIs, and we adapt to provide a tailored approach to project support. Clients work with dedicated teams who are familiar with their molecule, development strategy, and any constraints, so we take a collaborative approach in concert with our client’s needs.
In short, CDMOs must respond to the specialized capability challenge by investing ahead of the curve, embedding quality and safety into every aspect of their operations, and partnering with clients in a way that is transparent, strategic, and mindful of long-term success. ESTEVE CDMO is committed to this path in small molecule APIs.
An Opportunity to Engage
TPN: Finally, what did you most enjoy at DCAT Week 2026?
Oro: DCAT Week 2026 was once again a highlight in the industry calendar. It provided a valuable opportunity to meet face-to-face with partners, customers, and peers, and to engage in the kind of in-depth, strategic conversations that are often difficult to replicate virtually. As a member of the DCAT Education Committee, it was also great to reconnect with fellow committee members.
Also, in the same week, we were delighted to have been recognized as the Jury Awards Winner 2026 for Most Innovative CDMO at the CDMO Leadership Awards. The recognition was especially valuable as it was based not only on the Jury’s votes and prestigious Tufts research, but also on a poll of LinkedIn members; our peers, suppliers, and customers. On behalf of our whole team, we are very honored. We were also in the top three CDMO companies in the 'Small Molecule API CDMO of the Year'- Small/Mid-Sized category.
DCAT Week was also an important opportunity for us to further showcase the evolution of the ESTEVE CDMO brand and share how we are sharpening our value proposition, including our expanded global footprint, our specialized capabilities, and our renewed emphasis on collaboration and proximity to customers. Just as importantly, it was an opportunity to listen closely to what our partners need from us in the years ahead.
Overall, it was an exceptionally positive and productive week at the Lotte Palace Hotel in New York. It was great to connect with colleagues and industry peers and explore how we can continue working together to build the next generation of robust, patient-centric supply chains.
We are already looking forward to building on these conversations and reconnecting again at DCAT Week 2027.
About the Interviewee
Andrea Oro serves as Managing Director for Esteve CDMO US (formerly Regis Technologies, Inc.), as well as Global Head of Commercial Operations and Strategy for ESTEVE CDMO. Over the course of her career, Andrea has worked across many areas of the pharmaceutical industry, throughout the entire value chain.
Andrea began her career in research at an innovator company, focusing on biological drug targets. She later moved into the contract biologic drug substance and sterile fill/finish drug space, and subsequently expanded her role into small molecule APIs, oral solid dose, and even topicals.
This broad experience gave Andrea a comprehensive understanding of the industry, and as a leader it helped her build a team that is fully focused on partnering with multiple innovators to bring complex medicines to patients reliably and efficiently. With experience from both innovators and partners, Andrea has developed a special sensitivity to what customers need from a service provider, which in turn has made a significant difference in establishing a truly collaborative way of working, both internally at ESTEVE CDMO, and externally with clients.
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