CONTRACT & TOLL MANUFACTURING the most important raw materials and intermediates will again be made available inside the US , and will unlock a relatively inelastic supply chain originating in nations with substantial government control .
Strategic geographic considerations
For companies like AVN , making manufacturing more sustainable by decreasing the energy requirements using process intensification to reduce the environmental impacts and applying intrinsic safety techniques to improve process safety for chemical manufacturing is a focal initiative in onshoring chemical manufacturing .
Process intensification is the redesign of chemical manufacturing to reduce its physical as well as environmental footprint . This results in both capital savings and reduced environmental impact .
Intensified processes have better opportunities for the integration of heating and cooling , all while reducing the carbon footprint of the process . More efficient and effective mixing , novel catalysts and the application of advanced process control create processes that are more reliable , and have more consistent product quality and reduced capital cost .
Intrinsic safety is also an important aspect of process sustainability and can be a key driver as we develop the processes that will be deployed when they are brought back onshore . The key products that have been offshored , including nitrations , aminations and fluorinations , are challenging chemistries .
Designing plants that minimise inprocess volumes , are self-regulating in the event of upsets , and can contain upsets are examples of inherent safety practices . Continuous or flow chemistry processes can be routes to inherently safer designs . These changes will eliminate or reduce the likelihood of environmental and safety events , and improve the reliability of the plants , further assuring a robust supply chain .
More than 80 % of the overall carbon emissions within the supply chain of consumer packaged goods companies take place through the process of getting a product from the source to the end customer . 4 As we reduce reliance on international supply chains , we must examine opportunities to localise integration points for intermediates within the pharmaceutical industry to reduce carbon intensity , reduce shipping costs and create local economic opportunities .
The Appalachia region has long been a centre of gravity in the petrochemical industry and holds a rich history in innovation and technical expertise . This region is plentiful in raw materials from the Marcellus and Utica Shales , physical accessibility of intermediate manufacturers and proximity to large consumer markets . These are all essential to close-coupling raw material generation and consumption .
The location is prime for increasing speed-to-market all while reducing the energy required to transport raw materials for chemical manufacturing across multiple industries in the US and Canada . Close to the raw materials extraction point , Appalachia offers a shortened supply chain , with shipments to the Eastern seaboard via readily accessible rail , road and river transport , all while being strategically located near a high percentage of the population .
Onshoring in Appalachia creates the opportunity for high-tech jobs in chemical manufacturing with pharmaceutical intermediates . The region has an exceptional workforce , many of whom have been displaced from technically intense , vocationally difficult roles in mining and steel . Such people are strong candidates to fill the ranks in chemical manufacturing .
Between 2011 and 2021 , coal industry employment in Appalachia decreased by 62 %, priming workforce development initiatives to support local economies and reskill employees for other industries . 5 Opportunities to retrain and further enhance the skills of workers within speciality chemical plants builds on the existing operator and technician programmes that are available locally and creates a generational entry point into the industry within a historically underserved region .
Conclusion
The chemical industry is currently presented with opportunity to impact our daily lives by creating more accessible medicines , reducing carbon intensity and potentially evolving the employment possibilities within the sector .
Not only does onshoring pharmaceutical chemical manufacturing make sense from a logistics and financial standpoint , it is the right thing to for the total value chain . From CEOs to chemists , we are presented with the prospect of creating a tangible outcome to benefit society that will be experienced for decades to come .
We must ask ourselves : do our partners have the technical strengths to enable the faster pharma response times and fewer supply chain disruptions available through onshoring ? Let ’ s seize this opportunity to utilise our unique skills and uncommon infrastructure to do the right thing for both society and business . ●
Steven B . Hedrick
CHAIRMAN & CEO
References : 1 : www . vox . com / policy-and-politics / 23484040 / rsv-flu-amoxicillin-tamiflu-abuterol-drug-shortages 2 : www . ncbi . nlm . nih . gov / books / NBK583746 /# 3 : www . fda . gov / news-events / congressional-testimony / safeguarding-pharmaceutical-supply-chains-global-economy-10302019 4 : www . mckinsey . com / capabilities / sustainability / our-insights / starting-at-the-source-sustainability-in-supply-chains 5 : www . arc . gov / wp-content / uploads / 2022 / 09 / 2022-09-Coal-Production-and-Employment-in-Appalachia . pdf
AVN CORPORATION k + 1 304 720 1043 J steve . hedrick @ avncorp . com j www . avncorp . com
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