In a collegial industry, all clinical trial suppliers must work intimately with rivals. No matter how large or small a competitor may be, professionalism requires putting aside emotions of wariness or distrust. It's hard enough to get the science right, obey the law and finish the study. But tensions between large and small firms are rising in…more...

Their union didn't start out as a particularly award-winning one. The contract research organization (CRO) Quintiles and Brussels-based Solvay Pharmaceuticals came together eight years ago and agreed to a functional service provider relationship, with Quintiles taking over Solvay's trial operations. And like many marriages, it went along fine. Nothing spectacular; just…fine. A few buzzwords and business catch…more...

As with caterpillars and butterflies, there has been a metamorphosis in attitudes to technology inside the contract research organization (CRO) industry. In the first stage, CRO representatives stood up at conferences and said, more or less: Technology? Huh? Now? Why? In the wake of an intriguing ediary partnership between Quintiles and invivodata, at least one big CRO…more...

The contract research organization (CRO) Medpace has been getting good reviews lately. Last spring, the Cincinnati-based firm made our list of the Top 12 Master Providers (CROs and technology companies that serve the space), becoming only one of three private CROs to do so. In June, Medpace was voted the best CRO by investigational sites polled by…more...

Another Encorium deal has bitten the dust. The beleaguered contract research organization (CRO) recently announced that its recent attempt to sell its Finnish subsidiary Encorium OY to an unnamed CRO in the U.S. is scuttled. In a release, the company stated that, on the heels of $8.7 million in new business contract wins thanks to its selection…more...

The contract research organization (CRO) PPD unleashed enough news for a year this week. The company announced a long list of new directions, ominous numbers and strategic shifts, including: • The company's quarterly earnings (not great, but not terrible); • The planned acquisition of the Chinese CRO Excel PharmaStudies, which will make PPD a major player in…more...

Trio Clinical Research may not be in the rapid growth mode it was forecasting last year when its owners sold a majority stake to two equity groups. But things are moving along nicely for the contract research organization (CRO) and research staffing hybrid. Kurt Mussina joined the company as senior VP of business development in March. It…more...

The economy isn't getting Quintiles down. The mammoth contract research organization (CRO) just announced that it has consolidated its operations in Scotland into one brand new, state of the art, built-to-suit, 115,000-square-foot building. The new structure cost about $15 million to build. Quintiles is renting. Tom Wollman, senior VP of global central laboratories for the Research Triangle-based…more...