The Hindu Business Line : Manipal AcuNova buys German co

Bangalore, Nov. 5 Contract research organisation Manipal AcuNova Ltd announced its European foray with the acquisition of a German CRO, ECRON GmbH, for an undisclosed sum.

The new entity, ECRON AcuNova, marks one of the first overseas acquisitions by an Indian CRO; it will drive the company’s growth in Europe and the US where ECRON is known, the Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, Mr D.A.Prasanna, said here.

Mr Prasanna, who will head the Asian operations based in Bangalore, said the company now had a combined revenue of Rs 50 crore and 265 employees. It was expected to see 22 per cent revenue growth and 10 per cent increase in staff numbers in the short term. The name change in India may take a year or so more.

Dr Klaus D.Wiedey, President and founder of the Frankfurt-based ECRON, continues as its European head while AcuNova’s Dr Kohkan Shamsi will head the US operations.

Dr Wiedey said the Indian dimension added a large talent pool skilled in clinical data management, central lab service for phase-I trials, medical writing besides a vast and ready patient pool – which were scarce in the West. The new company is backed by co-promoter Manipal Group’s 19-hospital network to conduct trials.

ECRON in turn would bring 85 experts, big European clients and its track record with European and US regulators.

He said, “This collaboration will benefit our European and US clients. The possibility of extending trials from Europe to India will make drug development faster. Trial data analysed from India [would speed] up submission to regulators like EMEA and US FDA.”

ECRON is directly present in Germany, Ukraine, Poland, Spain, the UK, Italy and the Czech Republic. Mr Prasanna said clients will be able to conduct trials at European hospitals and enter regulated markets.

There has reportedly been a spurt in clinical trials done in India – from 225 in 2005 to 400 in 2006 and 600 this year. AcuNova alone is involved in 29 clinical trials and 40 smaller PK/PD studies.

Mr Prasanna said the Indian CRO market was around $100 million, far lower than the potential or the China figures. Frost & Sullivan puts the Asian CRO market at $2 billion led by China, India, Australia, Hong Kong and South Korea.

Described as a merger of “German quality and Indian capability in clinical development,” the company will offer the entire range of services for phase I – IV clinical trials from project management, clinical data management, biostatistics, medical writing, central lab and bio-availability / bio-equivalence studies to pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical devices and diagnostic companies.