Below are several case studies which illustrate the types of services ATI has provided to its clients in the pharmaceutical and health care areas. These cases provide good examples of how ATI differentiates itself from conventional database and information service providers. In each case, ATI quickly moved beyond traditional vendor searches and developed unique, custom search strategies and telephoned dozens and dozens of sources to find just the desired solution.
New Surgical Glue for $1 billion market -- Successful acquisition
On behalf of this unit of well-known large health care conglomerate, ATI identified providers of emerging technologies likely to serve as the basis
for promising new tissue adhesives, sealants and adhesion prevention
products for surgical applications. Our client recently acquired a company that ATI originally
found in 1996, when it was still a tiny start-up, for $340 million, providing our client with the preeminent position
in a global market worth nearly $1 billion/year.
A client sought an expert on the cardiovascular side effects of the new triptan class of migraine drugs, such as elitriptan, almotriptan, frovatriptan and others. ATI provided information on 10 experts who had done extensive research on migraine compounds, including efficacy and safety studies, and several who also had studied cardiovascular side effects of migraine drugs. Included was a London-based doctor who had recently reviewed the latest class of triptan migraine drugs, including side effects, and a doctor based in the Netherlands who our client came to refer to after reading the information we had provided on him as the "world expert" in this area.
Gelatin Replacement Technology -- Technology Searching
Our client was seeking a water soluble material with thermal set properties similar to gelatin for use in coating tablets used in several OTC gel tab and gel cap pain relievers. They were looking for gel-like coatings with good water solubility, that were thermally reversible and dried easily to a pliable shiny film, and that were relatively inexpensive. Among other contacts, ATI located a company based in Europe that had developed a patented process that cost-effectively produces gelatin-free soft capsules, and who soon planned to introduce these soft capsules to the ingestible capsule market in the form of dietary supplements and pharmaceuticals. Our client is in the process of discussing licensing arrangements with this European concern.
Development and manufacture of a Dietary Supplement -- New Product Development Assistance
A client was seeking outside firms that could provide assistance in the development and manufacture of a dietary supplement. ATI found a company that had provided similar services on behalf of another large pharmaceutical company, and had the type of expertise and capabilities sought by our client -- specifically, able to handle solid dose forms, experience working with related dietary supplement products, and the ability to complete final development of the product and then contract manufacture it on our client's behalf.
Taste Masking Capabilities -- Contract Manufacturer
A large U.S.-based pharmaceutical company asked ATI to identify companies in Asia and Latin America with expertise in taste masking technologies. They had been using U.S. contractors for this purpose, but need to find, for cost and geographic reasons, to find companies in these countries familiar with the Wurster fluid bed based process. The companies needed to have the ability to spray acetone and acetone/methanol polymer solutions. The company's facility would also need to meet U.S. FDA requirements and be capable of working with 100-200 tons annually. ATI found several sources in India and one source in Mexico that met the client's requirements, and were in fact already working with the client's active ingredient and were utilizing the Wurster process.
Use of SAM-e Supplement in Europe -- Market Intelligence
A client was developing a new product for arthritis, S-adenosylmethionine (SAMe), that had been widely used in Europe for decades, and wanted to learn more about its use there as it prepared to introduce the product in the U.S. They were interested in learning in which country the product was sold, whether it was sold as an Rx product or OTC, and any sales information we could find. We identified several experts in Europe and the U.S., as well as online reference material, and not only learned the answers to client's questions (the product is found in Italy, Germany and Russia, is sold as an Rx product, is still "quite popular" in Italy, and we provide approximate sales volume of the product in Europe), but also provided insight into regulatory issues (e.g. the compound was in the process of being registered in Spain), learned of additional indications (liver, depression), and provided valuable information on key players and trends, including the fact that use of SAM-e in Europe was on the upswing and that establishing a strong presence in the U.S. might serve to drive greater demand for the product in Europe.
Back to Case Studies.