AAPS PharmSci 360 2024: Flex Manufacturing

As a preview of what’s to come at this year’s AAPS PharmSci 360, being held Oct. 20–23, 2024 in Salt Lake City, UT, Pharmaceutical Technology® sat down with Anna Jenks, director of Pharmaceutical Operations for Merck & Co., Inc. (known as MSD outside of the United States and Canada) in Rahway, NJ, USA to talk about her prologue presentation for the conference and the benefits of utilizing flexible manufacturing.

“Flexible manufacturing really relates to the industry and the needs of the industry,” says Jenks in the interview. “I think, from [a] historical facility standpoint, oftentimes we build fixed facilities that are harder to change. Flexible manufacturing looks at what we need now, but also is looking at what we need in the future, and even recognizing we don't know everything that we need, and we need to be able to change in the future when that need comes.”

At Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, Jenks states that they are focused on using flex manufacturing in clinical stage manufacturing but are looking to also apply it to commercial manufacturing.

“The clinical manufacturing has a short-term turnaround,” Jenks says. “Oftentimes, you see many short campaigns that are on days to weeks timeframe[s] and need fast switchover from one to the next, whereas the commercial manufacturing oftentimes has low, longer timeframes. So, you're looking, in a few years, [at] what kind of process train might be needed, and how are those retrofits going to occur. So the needs of flexible manufacturing might be slightly different, but the concepts definitely apply.”

Click the above video to watch the full interview.

Jenks’ prologue can be viewed on the AAPS PharmSci 360 website. AAPS PharmSci 360 is being held Oct. 20–23, 2024 in Salt Lake City, UT.