Can you remind our readers about Sai Life Sciences (Sai)’s presence in the life science sector?

Sai is a fully integrated CRO-CDMO organization driven by the vision to support innovator companies bring new medicines to life. We work with over 200 global pharma and biotech companies, from start-ups to the largest players in the industry. We work with 17 of the top 25 global large pharma companies. Our aim is to help our innovator partners accelerate the discovery, development and commercialization of small molecule programs.

What are the benefits to offering clients contract research and manufacturing services under one roof?

Nowadays, clients look for an integrated service partner that can assist them from molecular discovery to the market. Especially in the therapeutic areas of rare diseases and oncology, there is pressure to decrease the development and manufacturing timeline from 10 years down to five years. This need gives companies very little time to move between service providers. Fully integrating CRO and CDMO services under one roof saves time and avoids unnecessary bottlenecks.

What encouraged Sai’s decision to open its new highly potent API facility?

The potency profile of molecules is fast changing. High potent APIs have grown significantly, particularly due to accelerated research in oncology. Due to better science, compounds are getting much more potent, and the cytotoxicity of these HPAPIs with much lower exposure limits need a careful design of the manufacturing facility to handle them. Currently, all our manufacturing facilities operate with containment level of less than 1 µg/m³, with appropriate controls and expertise, allowing us to confidently handle high-potent molecules. Moving forward, we will continue to see an increased need for high-potent API manufacturing.

Are there any benefits to being headquartered in Hyderabad as a pharmaceutical hub?

Hyderabad has evolved dramatically in the last five years, and the local government has been very pro-industry in terms of setting up the region as a pharmaceutical hub. This ecosystem is evolving at a significant pace, and the overall pool of talent has increased significantly. From an access standpoint, Hyderabad and its biotech parks are easily accessible on highways from the airport for international customers coming to visit facilities. I think Hyderabad has become a very attractive destination for any global company looking for CRO/CDMO services, especially as companies are looking to de-risk their global supply chain networks.

What has Sai gained from expanding its footprint into the US and Europe?

While there are many things India can do well, the country faces certain limitations regarding talent with very niche and specific scientific skill sets. Sai expanded into the Boston ecosystem to increase exposure to industry knowledge and with strong belief that in biology, you have to be a pioneer, not a follower. In Boston, we work on high-end biology and ultimately integrate these learnings back into our Indian operations. At Manchester, we have a process research & development facility along with a GMP kilo lab for closer interaction and Early phase deliveries to our clients in UK, EU and even USA. Being present in the US and the UK provides us with the ability to play in the product innovation stage, taking products from development to commercialization, in a way that is not yet so feasible in the generic-centric Indian pharma industry.

Can you share Sai’s growth objectives for the next few years?

In light of global repositioning, I think there will be significant growth in the CRO/CDMO sector in India as companies need to offset or at least complement the scale of capacity coming out of China. The need to diversify and decrease dependence on China has significantly taken off, and over the next five years, I expect to see a great bull run, in terms where the Indian CRO-CDMO industry is going. Additionally, the biotech industry in India is currently extremely nascent, but it is evolving fast as generic margins drop, and many companies are starting to explore more innovative approaches to doing business. I anticipate Sai will take on more companies in the biotech sector in the future.