PM360 January 2010

Governor Chooses Pfizer VP
New Jersey Governor-elect Chris Christie named Richard Bagger, a Pfizer executive and former state legislator, his chief of staff. Bagger was a senior vice president for worldwide public affairs at Pfizer and served in the New Jersey Senate from 2002 to 2003 and in the Assembly from 1993 to 2002.

Consulting Group Hatches
Cadient Interactive (King of Prussia, PA), specializing in digital campaigns, tools, and services for healthcare and life sciences companies, has launched its Hatch Consulting services group. The Hatch Consulting team of strategic specialists with experience in healthcare and life sciences will help achieve brand objectives through interactive media. The team is segmented into disciplines including Market Development, Mobile Marketing, Consumer RM, Social/Emerging Media, Program Optimization/Analysis, Customer Acquisition, User Experience, Creative Execution, and Research Insights. 

Five for Jocoto
Jocoto Advertising (San Francisco, CA) has five new clients, including the animal health division of Abaxis, IntraPace, Luminous Medical, Relievant Medical, and a minimally invasive back surgery company. “The tide is turning,” said Colette Kuhnsman, Jocoto’s founding partner.  “We’re finding that medical companies are looking for a fresh start after downshifting on marketing expenditures earlier.” Jocoto specializes in advertising and marketing for the healthcare and life sciences industries.

DC REPS’ eLEARNING
District of Columbia pharmaceutical sales representatives will be able to earn credit toward maintaining their Pharmaceutical Detailer’s licenses with new eLearning classes from Total Learning Concepts. The Lawrenceville, NJ-based company, a division of Publicis Strategic Solutions Group, specializes in eLearning and provides biopharma training content and solutions. Three new courses are Compliance and Pharmaceutical Selling, Clinical Pharmacology, and Selling in the Managed Care Marketplace, and each provides four continuing education credits.

Agency of Record
Harrison and Star (New York, NY) became the launch marketing agency of record for Incyte’s Janus-Associated Kinase (JAK1/JAK2) inhibitor, currently referred to as INCB18424. This agent targets the JAK-STAT pathway and is a first-in-class compound that could become the first drug indicated for myelofibrosis (MF). Harrison and Star, an agency specializing in strategic and promotional campaigns that target specialists, will develop and execute all elements of pre-launch and launch activities.

FDA Partner
A new partnership between the FDA and Everyday Health will initially include a new co-branded Website www.EverydayHealth.com/FDA with healthcare information from the FDA. The site features the latest food and medical product safety information as well as info on prevention and wellness topics. A special “FDA Alert” will notify visitors in the event of breaking news.

Microsoft Acquisition
Microsoft has acquired Sentillion (Andover, MA), a health information technology (HIT) provider that makes context and access management software used by more than 1,000 hospitals. Microsoft adds Sentillion to its growing portfolio of HIT holdings and plans to integrate Sentillion’s technology into its Amalga Unified Intelligence System. The deal will also enable Microsoft to streamline access to multiple IT applications and patient data, regardless of whether they are Web-based, Windows-based, or legacy systems.

New Novartis Plant
Swiss-based drugmaker Novartis opened a new vaccine plant recently in Holly Springs, NC, with a ceremony attended by CEO Daniel Vasella. The plant is the largest of its kind under construction in the U.S.; regulatory approval of the facility is expected in 2013. Although years away from producing vaccines, the plant would be able to produce 150 million doses within six months of the start of any future pandemic. It may be able to produce emergency vaccines as early as late 2010.

GSK Cutting Waste
UK-based GlaxoSmithKline has set a target to cut the waste generated by pharmaceutical production by two-thirds from former levels that required 100kg of raw materials for every 1kg of drug produced. The company now plans to cut waste to 30kg for each 1kg of active pharmaceutical ingredient or API by 2015. API is the active compound in medicines to treat or cure disease, and waste reduction can be achieved by changing and reducing the number of chemical steps required, cutting the volume of solvents, and switching to the continuous manufacture of a single drug.
—Andrew Matthius