European Pharmaceutical Industry Outlook 2016 – France, Belgium & the Netherlands

In this article we aim to present a quick and easy to digest run-down of the main trends and developments in a highlighted sector of the process manufacturing industries in one of our covered regions. For more information on the areas we cover, click here.

In our previous article, two key differences were noted between the large, yet distinct, pharmaceutical markets of France & Benelux. Average size of capex investment is generally higher across the pharmaceutical industries of Belgium and the Netherlands, whereas investment activity in France is spread across smaller, more numerous schemes. This is still very much the trend as we move into 2016 and beyond.

The Netherlands

On our MyProtel project search engine we are currently tracking:

• 134 active pharma/biotech & laboratory projects;
• with a combined potential investment value of €1.2bn;
• an average project value of over €9m.

Leading the pack across the European pharmaceutical industry, the Netherlands has the fastest moving and strongest level of new capex project investment in the pharma and biotech markets. Multiple large players are spending huge amounts on a variety of pharmaceutical applications. Abbott, MSD, MedImmune and others have healthy investment pipelines, with new facilities, upgrades and expansion planned to service new processes and products.

Belgium

On our MyProtel project search engine we are currently tracking:

• 137 active pharma/biotech & laboratory projects;
• with a combined potential investment value of €1.8bn;
• an average project value of over €13m.

Activity in Belgium has slowed slightly compared to the previous period. However, there are still a large number of ongoing and planned project investment schemes of a high average value. There is a move away from API and primary manufacture. Genzyme in Geel and Pfizer in Puurs remain hotspots of large-scale investment. Conversely, investment activity at GSK across both sites at Rixensart and Wavre has slowed massively.

France

On our MyProtel project search engine we are currently tracking:

• 232 active pharma/biotech & laboratory projects;
• with a combined potential investment value of €2.6bn;
• an average project value of over €12m.

The trend in France is still toward numerous, smaller-scale upgrades and redevelopment projects rather than the larger new build and expansion projects seen in Belgium and the Netherlands. However, a few exceptions have emerged. Due to new developments, such as product introductions, developments from AstraZeneca, Ispen BioPharma and Sanofi are bucking the trend toward smaller schemes across the wider French pharmaceutical market.

Trends & Opportunities

Despite widespread relocation of API & some other primary processing functions to more competitive locations such as China, most high-level and specialist pharma/biotech production is being retained in France, Belgium and the Netherlands.

An area of growing investment is blood products, e.g. CAF-DCF in Belgium, Sanquin in the Netherlands and LFB in France – all of which are planning numerous project schemes.

The drive toward energy efficiency and growing importance of green credentials remain driven by both legal and CSR factors. Large players such as Sanofi are now looking to invest in greater energy efficiency and have appointed an environmental specialist to better meet environmental considerations & beat the competition. Innovative environmental solutions such as heat recovery from waste process liquids are also being considered.

Another area of change is within secondary manufacture, tied to new requirements around serialisation & traceability in pharmaceutical packaging which is being phased in around the globe. For Europe, a looming deadline of 2018 means that there is significant opportunity for suppliers of innovative packaging solutions to help end-users meet upcoming legal requirements. Further, drive for improvements in automation and efficiency in packaging are also a continued area of potential for suppliers.

Overall

The European pharmaceutical industry outlook for France, Belgium and the Netherlands remains globally competitive and buoyant in terms of capex investment. The balance and mix of this investment is changing in line with global economic pressures and new legislative requirements that have brought some uncertainty. This competitive context is passed from end-users to suppliers of equipment and services. As a result, suppliers must leverage market intelligence to time their sales approach and adopt solution based selling to help end-users meet external and internal pressures & challenges.